Tension
by Yemam2422
Summary: DL. Lindsay's back and so is the tension that seems to follow these two CSIs.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**: My take on what happens when Lindsay returns. I feel like this story has a similar tone to my first one, but I can't seem to get enough of Danny/Lindsay smuffy goodness. I am planning to delve a little deeper into that though ;) but then move beyond that in the next chapters.

Nothing happens in this story related to the spoilers for episode 18, except for a very mild innuendo.

Feedback is always appreciated!

xxxxx

Lindsay was making her away around the lab tables as if she'd never left. Even though she'd only been gone for a month she was afraid things would be different. However, everything was back to normal, both at work and otherwise. Her trip to Montana had been painful but a weight had lifted off of her shoulders and she felt like herself again.

She was thankful that no one made a big hoopla about her return – no welcome back party or exaggerated conversations. It was just simple, yet sincere greetings - "welcome back" and "glad your back" - from everybody. She'd let Mac know that she was ready to jump into work and he'd assigned her to lab work on her first day back.

Danny was heading towards the elevator to drop off trace at the DNA lab when saw her. Lindsay Monroe. His heart skipped a beat…and then another. Mac had informed everybody that she would be back today, but he wasn't sure if she'd immediately start working cases. He stopped in his tracks and blatantly stared at her. He hadn't seen in her in a month and he wanted to make sure he wasn't imagining her there.

He debated if he should go up to her now or wait until they could be alone. Alone for him to say all the things he never got the chance to before she left. All the things he would have said if she had said good bye to him instead of leaving a card. That he was sorry for what she had been through, that he wished he could have made it better, that he wanted her in his life, and was totally fine if that meant just as a friend. He decided he couldn't wait another second to see her and made his way into the lab.

"Montana," he said as he walked right up to her at the table, talking a deep breath to get his erratic heartbeat under control. He couldn't help the crooked grin that formed on his lips. She looked good, she looked happy. He was greeted by the vanilla scent he always associated with her. Her pants hugged her slender frame. He'd always thought she had great legs. The warmth and sparkle in her eye that had been missing for the past few months was back. Montana was back.

Lindsay froze when she heard him. Those three syllables traveled through her body, heightening all her senses, making her stomach flutter and her palms sweat. She hadn't avoided him but was nervous about seeing him. His greeting wasn't said in jest like when they'd first met that day of the zoo case. And it was more than just a nickname. It was the most comforting word she'd ever heard - she knew then that he wasn't angry at her for just leaving the card. That things were good between them. There was so much she wanted to tell him – about why she left, what had happened with her ten years ago, why she left a card instead of saying goodbye in person.

She turned to look at him. Wow. His eyes could always pack a punch. Her breath caught and warmth spread across her body. He looked exactly the same, not that she expected him to look different. She hadn't realized how much she missed him and welcomed the familiarity of his button down shirt, his glasses, his smile. His sense of personal space also hadn't changed, she noted. He was right next to her, barely an inch separating them. She had missed that too.

"Hey," she greeted him with a smile.

It had been a long time since he'd seen her smile like that. He hoped that she'd exorcised whatever she needed to while she was gone because he missed his Montana. He knew that was selfish of him but he also knew that Lindsay needed that too – she needed to rid of herself whatever burden had weighed her down the past four months. Danny wondered if he should thank her for her card. Would it be weird to bring it up after all this time? He decided to keep things light. "So, the cows and wheat fields weren't enough to keep you from coming back to the big apple?"

Lindsay closed her eyes, relieved that things weren't awkward between them. She realized while she was away how much New York felt more like her home now than Montana. She had many reasons to be happy to be back – her job, her coworkers, her friends, city life…Danny. "I did find myself missing the pizza and nail salons every fifty feet, but you know what they say; you can take the girl out of the country but not the country out of the girl."

"Well, _they_ don't know me and I'll make a full-fledged city girl out of you yet." He crossed his arms and leaned against the table. He just stared at her, still unable to get the grin off his face.

"What is so funny?" Lindsay asked, aware of his continued gaze and smirk.

"Nothing, nothing," he said as he leaned into her, eliminating even more of the barely there space between them. "It's just…good to see you." It was barely an accurate description of how he felt, how he had thought about her constantly – read her card daily, even looked up airline tickets to Bozeman once when he thought he'd go crazy if he didn't see her, but he needed to say _something_, and that would have to do for now.

Lindsay looked down, blushing. "I'm…I…I…it's good to see you too." That was so lame, she thought, but his nearness had flustered her. She wanted to say how much she missed him, thought of him while she'd been gone, but stopped herself. They needed to get back onto solid ground before they delved into that territory.

"Okay, well. I gotta get to DNA. Welcome back."

Lindsay watched him leave. For the first time in a long time she was filled with a sense of hope and optimism about the future and she knew Danny played a part in those feelings.


	2. Chapter 2

Two weeks later, Danny was examining hundreds of shards of glass from a crime scene. It was unclear if it was murder or suicide and the broken glass was their main evidence. Making his way through piece after piece Danny's thoughts wandered to Lindsay. Specifically, his attraction to her. His attraction had not died since she'd been gone, but he'd come to terms that he might not be able to act on it any time soon, if ever. He was just happy to have her back, to have her friendship. He wished there would be more between them, but he knew it would have to be Lindsay's move. So far, she'd made no verbal indication that she wanted anything except a friendship.

He couldn't resist standing a little too close to her, 'accidentally' touching her in the lab, or visiting her even when they weren't working a case together, and Lindsay certainly hadn't moved away from him or recoiled from his touch. In fact, he could swear she would move closer. Talk about facing temptation though, and Danny wasn't sure how much longer he could resist.

He lifted a piece of glass to examine it more closely when he'd caught Lindsay's reflection on one piece. There she was again. He'd spun around so quickly he nicked himself on the glass he was holding.

"Oh my goodness, Danny. Sorry! I thought you heard me. Was there anything on the glass? Blood? Was it contaminated?" Lindsay rattled off worriedly, as she rushed to put on a glove and grab a piece of gauze. She pressed it against his bleeding finger and held it there.

"No it was clean." He answered quietly, not worried about the nick, which was no worse than a paper cut. Instead he was focused on Lindsay. He couldn't tear his eyes away from her lips. Her perfectly shaped lips. Their soft pink color, with just a hint of gloss on them. Soft looking lips that tempted him to test their softness, touch them with his own on a daily basis. His mouth watered and he swallowed hard. His heart beat quickened and he felt a stirring behind the fly of his pants.

"Does that feel okay?" Lindsay asked as she removed the gauze.

The fact that he was getting hard just by standing next to her? Did that feel okay? Depends on how you looked at it – right now, at this moment it felt more than okay. In a minute when she stepped away and there'd be no relief in sight? That would be less than okay. He finally gathered his thoughts to mutter, "Yeah, fine."

Lindsay stepped away, throwing the gauze in the trash. "Looks like just a small nick. Tough those seem to always hurt the most. I'm really sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it, no problem." He quickly turned back to his work, replacing his gloves.

"Mac sent me to help you with this glass. I'll start on this side," she said indicating to the opposite end he was working on.

That was a good idea, he thought. She should stay as far away from him as possible or else who knew what he'd be tempted to do. Danny focused on his work, trying to avoid the alluring distraction that was Lindsay Monroe.


	3. Chapter 3

Danny was rushing into the locker room when he crashed into Lindsay.

"Woah, sorry," she'd said, grabbing his arms to keep her balance.

Danny had instinctively grabbed her waist to keep her from falling. "It's okay. I wasn't paying attention." They stood like that for a moment…and then another.

"How's everything going?" she asked, clearing her throat, quickly letting go of her grip on his arms.

"I think it's just one of those days, today, you know? When nothing seems to go your way. I overslept this morning, we ran out of coffee in the break room and now the button came off my shirt. Right in the middle, too, so I can't even hide it," he said as he held up the button in question.

"Let me see." Lindsay pulled the fabric to assess his shirt. "I can fix it for you."

"No, it's okay. I'll just change. I'll fix it later." He said, quickly moving away from her and those pesky little fingers that felt like they were burning his skin through two layers of shirts.

"Later? Come on, Danny. You know you'll never fix it. You'll let this perfectly nice shirt go to waste. You probably don't even own a thread and needle and I happen to carry one in my purse. Come on, you don't even have to take your shirt off."

Before he could say anything else, Lindsay had gone to her locker, located said needle and threat and straddled the bench. She patted the bench in front of her. "Have a seat. It won't even take a minute."

Going against his better judgment, he took a seat facing her. Lindsay reached up and ran her hands across his shoulders and down his torso, flattening any wrinkles. Danny jumped reflexively.

"You okay?" Lindsay asked.

"Yeah, yeah. Sure."

Lindsay scooted closer to him on the bench for better positioning. How could any red-blooded male function normally under these conditions, he thought. He closed his eyes, hoping it would quell his thoughts of pushing Lindsay onto her back on the bench and crushing her beneath him.

As Lindsay worked on the button, the back of her fingers kept grazing his stomach. His rock hard stomach, she noted. She hoped he didn't notice her fingers were shaking. Her stomach always went up in knots whenever Danny was close to her, and he was especially close to her now.

Danny contracted his stomach, hoping to avoid the delicious contact of Lindsay's fingers and bit his lip to avoid groaning from the jolts of electricity that ran through him every time it happened.

"Done. See, that wasn't so bad was it?" She looked at him, pleased with her handiwork.

Without looking down at what she'd done, keeping his eyes on hers, Danny said, "No, not bad at all."

A shudder rippled through Lindsay. She recognized the sensuality in his gaze. "Just like new," she said as she hastily moved off the bench and put the needle and thread in her locker. "Well, I'll see you later," she said as she practically ran out of the room.

Running her hands through her hair, Lindsay squeezed her eyes shut, doing her best to not think about Danny Messer.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N**: A huge thanks to the couple of reviews that I got. You gave me hope that this story wasn't a total dud. At least I hope that's the case. I'm still undecided where this is headed next, but hope you enjoy!

xxxxx

Lindsay stormed into her office where Danny was already sitting at his desk. She shut the door behind her and turned to Danny with her hands on her hips.

"Danny!" she exclaimed.

"What? What is it?" He wondered what had her all bothered.

"How could you not tell me that Mac and Peyton were seeing each other?" Lindsay had just walked by Mac's office and been shocked when she saw Mac kiss Peyton. It was a chaste kiss, a quick peck on the lips when he thought no one was looking, but enough for Lindsay to recognize the action as belonging to two people who were intimate. She'd been totally surprised to see that coming from Mac, who was normally so guarded and reserved.

"Hey, what am I? Perez Hilton over here? It's not my business to gossip about Mac's personal life." He'd been surprised himself when Mac unexpectedly joined Peyton at a crime scene a few weeks ago after their date had been interrupted, but he was happy for him. Mac deserved someone nice and decent like Peyton. Though if Danny had to put money on Mac hooking up with someone at the office he would have bet on Stella for some reason.

"I just can't believe it. I would have never guessed or believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. For some reason I pictured him frowning upon inter-office romances."

"Is that right?" Danny questioned. "Have you been considering an inter-office rendezvous yourself?" Danny asked her teasingly, but he was seriously curious, and knew what his question implied. He might as well have asked if she'd ever consider a romance with him. Ever since she'd been back neither of them had addressed their feelings for each other. Did she still like him 'a lot'? Did she know that he was still into her? All those questions remained unanswered.

Lindsay wondered if she should go there – 'there' being the ambiguous mine field that was their personal relationship. She decided to take a tentative step in making that territory less dangerous. "It has crossed my mind," Lindsay replied. She matched his teasing tone but knew this conversation was more significant than either of them was letting on.

Danny's stomach dropped. He had expected her to tell him to be quiet or ignore his question altogether. Maybe he'd finally get some answers. "So what's stopped you from making a move?"

God, why did he have to lick his lip like that, Lindsay thought. He always seemed to do that when he got really interested in a conversation and she wished he would stop. He had no idea how unbelievably attractive and distracting it was. "Well, you know how it is. Relationships with co-workers can be so complicated and I was nervous. Besides, I think I totally blew it with the guy so it doesn't even matter"

"How so?"

"I just…I just messed up. He's a great guy and I just totally ruined everything." This was turning into an unexpected moment of truth and Lindsay's heart was racing.

"Well if this guy is as great as you say then I'm sure he'd totally understand the reasons for whatever went down between you two." So all this time that he'd been thinking he'd ruined everything between them by asking her out on a date all those months ago, she'd been thinking the same thing of herself. If only she knew how much he didn't care that she'd distanced herself from him, shut him out. Heck, if he'd had to deal with what she did – being a victim of a brutal crime, witnessing the murder of four friends, testifying against the monster who did it – he would have reacted even more severely.

"Yeah, maybe you're right."

Danny desperately wanted this conversation to not be hypothetical. "So, who is this guy anyway?"

Lindsay panicked. She wasn't ready to verbalize her feelings. Not yet. "Oh, just this guy."

"Does he have a name?"

"Yes."

"Lindsay." Danny said sternly out of frustration. He could feel her pulling back, but he knew this was about him and her so why couldn't she say it? He'd laid his feeling out for her that day after she'd stood him up and this time he needed her to be the one to do it. Unless, of course, she was no longer interested. Oh god. She was still interested, right? He needed to leave before he lost it. Lindsay Monroe would be the death of him yet. "Well, if you want my advice you should go for it. I'm sure if you talk to him you'll realize you didn't mess up anything." Danny stood up and walked out of the office. Couldn't she see that he wanted to be with her? What more could he do? He knew the next move would have to come from Lindsay and he hoped she'd make it soon.

Lindsay sat frozen in her chair, replaying what had just happened in her head. She hadn't anticipated her quest for gossip on Mac and Peyton would turn into a pseudo heart-to-heart between her and Danny. She hadn't been prepared for it and she'd chickened out. How hard would it have been for her to just tell Danny that it was him that she'd been thinking about. He'd left unhappy with her and she couldn't blame him. Whenever things got too serious or personal she got nervous and retreated into herself. Stupid, stupid, stupid. That's all Lindsay could think to describe how she'd just acted as she rubbed her palms into her eyes. Hadn't she learned anything the past month away from him? Hadn't she been having trouble sleeping because thoughts of Danny keeping her awake? Didn't she return from Montana with a new resolve to making things better between her and Danny?

Yes, yes she had. That thought rooted itself in her mind and coursed through her body, making her jump off her chair. She had decided to make things right and she knew it was now or never.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** It took me until yesterday to focus on anything other than the greatness that was last week's episode!! It almost made me lose my motivation for this story because I felt like I didn't want to create a reality different from the perfection of what we saw. But I feel like Danny and Lindsay are headed into this cute/flirty/dating stage on the show and they're headed in a similar direction in my story and I'm totally rejuvenated now. Enjoy!

xxxxx

Lindsay ran down the hallway but didn't see Danny. She searched the locker room, break room, all the labs but he'd disappeared. She was about to continue her search when she ran into Mac.

"Lindsay, I need you in the lab to go over trace from the McMillan case."

"Got it. On my way." Her search for Danny would have to wait. She was actually grateful for the detour because she realized she wasn't even sure what she would say to him when she found him. Hopefully examining some dirt and stains microscopically would help clear her mind.

xxxx

The end of their shift had arrived and Lindsay had still been unable to find Danny.

She was sure he was avoiding her, but she wasn't going to let him get away that easily. She waited in the locker room for awhile but there was still no sign of him. She went back to their office and saw his coat and cell phone at his desk and knew he was still in the building. He was good at evasion, she'd give him that, but there was one place he'd have to go eventually to get home and she'd be there waiting.

xxxx

Danny was making his way through the parking garage to his car, grateful that he'd been successful in dodging Lindsay since their morning conversation. He'd actually hated doing it but he needed just a day to cool off and not let his feelings get the best of him in front of her, which they were starting to do. Lord knows hiding out in autopsy while Sid relived memories of his drug laced college years was not how he'd prefer to spend his afternoon. He wanted to go home, shower and mindlessly watch the Yankee game for the rest of the night. Anything other than think about Lindsay Monroe. He reached into his jacket pocket to fish out his car keys but came up empty. He checked the other pocket with no luck.

"Great," Danny muttered to himself. He always had his keys in his right jacket pocket. Had he left them back at the office? He went through a mental checklist of his activities that day and was positive he hadn't taken his keys out of his jacket once. Had he accidentally locked them in his car? Shit, he thought, and cupped his hands over his eyes to peer into the window. He was greeted by a smiling Lindsay Monroe in the passenger seat who was dangling his car keys in her hand.

"What the…What are you doing?!" he yelled and frantically tried opening the locked driver side door.

Lindsay rolled down the window, "I want to talk to you."

"And this is your idea of normal conversation behavior? Some people might call this stalking."

"You've been avoiding me all day. I had no choice."

"No I haven't," Danny lied.

"Yes you have."

"No I…" Danny stopped. They sounded like bickering five-year-olds. He was still slightly annoyed at her and this wasn't helping. "Unlock the door, give me my keys."

"Danny, please. I really want to talk to you. Don't let my creepy stalking have been for nothing."

Danny fought a smile. He hadn't expected this from Montana, that's for sure. "Fine. Open up." Lindsay unlocked the doors and Danny slid in.

"Not here," Lindsay said.

"Then where?"

"Let's grab some dinner." After all the times Danny had offered to take her out to eat she knew it was about time she reciprocated.

Another unexpected move from Lindsay. This was interesting, Danny thought. "Well, well Miss Monroe. It sounds like you are asking me out on a date."

Lindsay rolled her eyes and threw the car keys at Danny. "Just drive. Let's go to Cozy's."

Danny snatched the keys before they hit him in his face. "Alright, alright. I was just joking."

xxxxx

Danny and Lindsay found themselves at a back table at Cozy's, away from the stage. She'd ordered a glass of her favorite white wine to calm her nerves while Danny had a beer.

"So, what'd you want to talk about?" Danny asked.

Lindsay shut her eyes and inhaled deeply. Was she ready for this? She flashed back to the moment in the hallway after she'd stood him, giving Danny the 'it's not you it's me' excuse, telling him that she liked him. 'A lot' she'd lamely added. And it was true, she did like him. But the distance, both literally and figuratively, that had been between them the past few months had changed things. And she was the reason that distance existed in the first place – she'd pushed everyone, especially Danny, away – and she wasn't sure if the damage she'd done was irreversible or how to move forward with him. She knew the physical attraction still there but this was about so much more than harmless flirting.

"Danny I…", she knew she needed to be totally honest with him but struggled to find the words, "…I thought a lot about you…and us...while I was gone. And since I've been back for that matter."

Danny was speechless. For the third time that night Lindsay had totally caught him off guard. "Lindsay I…"

"Let me finish, just let me get this out," she interrupted. "I know that I treated you horribly before I left for Montana. It was…I just…that's just what I do when things get too emotional or personal for me. I run and hide. Danny, I am sorry. I really am." Lindsay paused, gauging his reaction, hoping to find any sign of forgiveness.

"It's okay Lindsay. You don't owe me an apology. I know what you were going through."

"That's no excuse for the way I acted. You deserved better and I regret the way I handled things, but I don't regret not starting a relationship with you."

Danny did his best to ignore the fact that his heart was slowly but surely sinking into his stomach. "Oh," was all he could say.

"I need you to understand that the reason I shut you out was not because of anything you did. Ever since that night, seeing four of my best friends die right in front of my eyes, it innately changed me. And working with death and murder and crime everyday just reinforces how quickly and unfairly people you care about can be taken away. So, I don't let people in easily. Every relationship I've been in over the past ten years has been casual. I knew that each guy was not someone I would get serious about, really care about, so it was safe for me. It was easy to let go when that time came. If I thought I could care about them then I avoided it, I ran the other way. And that's what I did with you. When you asked me out to dinner that night I knew it wasn't just a casual night out. And then getting the call about my case just brought up all these emotions that I couldn't control and I got scared. I wasn't ready for what you wanted Danny, but I never meant to hurt you or push you out of my life. I hope you understand that." Lindsay exhaled and nervously smiled. Relief washed over her. However Danny felt, whatever he said next, she'd finally said everything she'd been holding back from him for months and it felt good.

Danny was trying to digest everything he'd just heard. She'd never been this open with him before. He was finally getting some insight into Lindsay's life and he welcomed it. "Lindsay, listen, I get it. You don't ever have to feel bad about what happened. I never meant to make to make things difficult for you or complicate things." Danny meant every word. Would he have rather heard that she was ready to date him and make all kinds of wild love to him? Sure, but this was okay too. Danny put his elbows on the table and leaned into Lindsay, raising his beer in a toast, "To fresh starts."

"To fresh starts," Lindsay repeated, clinking her glass to his beer. They both sipped their drinks without taking their eyes off each other.

xxxx

He could definitely get used to this, Danny thought as finished his second beer. Sitting in a bar with Montana next to him, laughing, talking - it was perfect.

"Do you remember the time you asked me to meet you here after that music promoter case last year?" Danny asked.

"Yeah, of course. Mac was performing."

"I actually thought you were kind of into me, that it was a date or something." He wasn't sure what made him come out with that admission. It must be something in the air tonight.

"What? Really?" Lindsay was genuinely surprised. She remembered how nervous she'd been inviting him there but it had never crossed her mind that it would be perceived as anything romantic. "I was just proving a point."

"And what point was that?"

"That you shouldn't rush to judgment about people…particularly me. You thought I was this naïve country girl who wouldn't make it in the big, scary city."

"That's not true," Danny said defensively, though she was mostly right.

"You know it is."

"Yeah, maybe," he admitted. "I guess I think you can make it here now."

"You guess? You think?!" Lindsay retorted, giving him a light punch in the arm.

"I'm just kidding. You're a tough girl Montana." Danny thought about all the times Montana had surprised him since her first day – with her fearlessness, her wit, intelligence, the way she looked in a low cut green dress while walking down a subway track. He also remembered how it took him awhile to warm up to her when she'd first started. "You must have thought I was such an ass when we first met."

Lindsay smiled remembering their introduction at the zoo, and Danny's prank on her. "I thought you were arrogant but I knew I could handle you."

"Is that right? I'm surprised you had the time to reach that conclusion considering how much time you spent checking me out," Danny teased.

"Oh, please," Lindsay couldn't help but laugh as she took a sip of wine. She had immediately thought he was cute and over time his appeal had only grown. Case in point, the way he was leaning back in the chair now, slightly hunched, one arm draped over the back of the chair, the other holding his beer. He screamed masculinity and sexiness.

"So, you ready to get out of here?" Danny asked. It was close to last call and they were one of the last few people left at the bar.

"Sure," Lindsay replied.

"I'll drive you home."

"Thanks." Lindsay inhaled sharply when he placed his hand at the small of her back to lead her out of the bar and did her best to ignore the warmth that spread through her from that light touch.

xxxxx

Danny insisted on walking Lindsay to her apartment and they found themselves at her door.

"I had fun tonight," Danny said.

"Me too. Sorry that I had to hijack your car."

"No problem," he laughed. Danny found himself staring at her again, like he'd been doing all night. "Thanks for…" he wasn't sure what to thank her for – her honesty, opening up to him, finally sharing her feelings, giving him hope that there might still be something there between them, at least one day. Unable to articulate any of this he let the sentence die and looked at the floor.

Lindsay could literally feel the tension surrounding them. It seemed to emanate from Danny and pulse into her. He was standing in front of her, his body mere inches from being pressed into her. Her heart hammered in her chest. She kept looking at the floor or down the hallway because every time she looked up she was met by his stare, looking as if he was searching for something. What was he looking for? A friend? A lover? She wasn't sure. And she wasn't sure what she wanted either.

"I…should go," Lindsay said quietly, needing to leave before she acted on any of the impulses coursing through her body.

Danny didn't want her to go. He wanted her to invite him in, he wanted to kiss her. He would have to lean in just an inch to do it. Just a brush of his lips against hers was all he needed, that would sustain him. But not tonight. "Yeah, see you tomorrow," he said, using all his self-control to step back from her.

Lindsay entered her apartment and leaned her forehead against the closed door. She wished she didn't feel like a teenager on a first date but she couldn't help it. Had this been anyone else she would have had no problem being clear where things were headed. But with Danny it was different, it was always different.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N**: A tremendously huge 'thank you' to everyone who has read and reviewed. It's extremely encouraging and motivating. I hope you find the reasoning behind Danny and Lindsay's mindsets to be realistic. It made perfect sense in my head, but I'm not sure it translated so well when I wrote it.

Also, I apologize for any errors/typos. I know they really bug me. This is still new to me (only my second story ever) and I understand that's what betas are for, but I don't have one nor know how to go about getting one – so sorry in advance!

Finally, be patient. A release of all this tension is on its way .

Enjoy!

xxxxx

"Here are everyone's tickets to tonight's Governor's Ball," Stella said, handing a fancy looking invitation to Danny, Lindsay, Adam, Hawkes, Sid and Flack, who were all gathered in the break room. "Sorry for the short notice, but the police commissioner has asked that everyone attend as a show of support. I know Mac also appreciates it – it will reflect well on our lab if we all show up."

The CSIs were mildly annoyed at the unexpected invitation. They had to get all dressed up to sit in a room full of politicians and feign interest in the lives of the city's wealthy. But no one would dare ignore a request like this from Mac.

"It starts at 7:30. Let's plan to all meet there. I know its last minute but feel free to bring a date if you'd like," Stella continued.

At the mention of a date, Danny couldn't help but glance at Lindsay who was standing next to him. She had a perplexed look on her face, which was very cute on her. She was probably worrying about what she was going to wear. He wished he could take Lindsay as his date. There were plenty of good, complicated reasons why he couldn't. The first being…

"I have nothing to wear Stella!" Lindsay exclaimed, "It's too last minute for me to get a dress."

"You're such a girl," Flack said, poking her in the arm.

"You can just rent at tux, it's a lot easier for you guys," Lindsay retorted.

"Linds, don't worry about it. Whatever you have in your closet will be fine," Stella assured her. "See everyone later tonight."

Lindsay's lower lip pouted in defeat. This night sure would be interesting.

xxxx

The evening was going better than expected, Lindsay thought as she waited at the bar for a mojito. After several phone calls to friends and an emergency meeting at her apartment that involved a whirlwind of dresses and shoes, she'd found both that fit and looked good on her, if she could say so herself. She'd chosen a black, A-line, knee length cocktail dress with a fitted strapless bodice, and slightly ballooned skirt. A simple pair of sling-back pumps and chandelier earrings completed the look.

She was meeting a lot of new people from the police department and everyone was enjoying themselves. Everyone except for Danny, it seemed. She glanced across the room to the lab's reserved table, knowing she'd find him there brooding with a drink in hand, as he'd been most of the night. He was looking in her direction, but didn't acknowledge her small smile. She wasn't sure what his problem was. Maybe he just really hated these things. She, on the other hand, was having a great time and joined Hawkes on the dance floor once the bartender handed over her drink.

Flack also noticed Danny's sour mood and had been watching him watch Lindsay for the past several minutes. Flack prided himself on his ability to read people, detect lies from truth, but it didn't take Sherlock Holmes to know what was going on with Danny. He took a seat next to his good friend. "Take a picture, it'll last longer."

"What are you talking about?" Danny said without taking his eyes off Lindsay.

"Are you planning to socialize tonight, maybe have a conversation, actually get up from this chair or is your game plan to stare at Lindsay all night?"

"What?" Danny asked, turning to Flack who'd finally got his full attention.

"You heard me."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Danny lied, turning back to his drink. Actually, he knew exactly what Flack was talking about. He couldn't stop looking at Lindsay. He wanted to stop. He had willed himself to stop. He kept drinking in the hopes the alcohol would impair his brain function enough that he'd stop – or at least make the vision of her blurry enough that it wasn't a distraction. But it was hopeless. It was as if she'd put a spell on him, cursed him with a night – if not a lifetime - of staring and longing. But who could blame him? She looked amazing. Beyond amazing. Even now, with her back to him, one hip tilted slightly to the side as she talked to Stella, a coil of heat slid low inside him. The dress hugged her body in all the right places, accentuating her curves. He'd always been indifferent to hair but hers brushed her shoulders as if taunting him, touching her in a way that he wanted to. His muscles flexed. She made his fingers itch. He was tempted to storm across the ballroom, grab her and have his way with her right there on the dance floor. The fact that he could do no such thing left him frustrated.

"What's going on with you two anyway?" Flack asked, interrupting Danny's thoughts.

"Who?"

"You know who I'm talking about. You and Lindsay."

"Nothing."

"Danny, come on. You can talk to me. I thought things were good between you guys." Danny had shared bits and pieces with him and Flack was surprised to see his friend looking so tormented.

"Everything is good," Danny said succinctly.

"Then why are you sitting here like a love sick teenager?"

"I'm not," Danny replied defensively.

"Aaactually, you are. So come clean. What's going on?"

Danny let out a deep sigh. Maybe it would do him some good to get Flack's perspective on his situation. "Everything is good, it really is. But in a weird way I feel like we're moving backwards."

"How so?"

"Well, it's like…I couldn't wait for her to get back from Montana because I felt like we'd be able to put everything behind us and move forward…"

"And by 'move forward' you mean…"

"I mean, actually go on a date and just hang out. But instead we're back to being 'just friends' and that's fine. It's better than the way things were before she left, but I'm into her, you know. I can't get a good read on her. I'm not sure what she wants. She never said she wanted to be in a relationship, just that she wanted me in her life. What does that even really mean? I'm afraid to do something that'll push her away and mess everything up again. It's like… we're in this weird… relationship purgatory," Danny finally found the perfect words to describe how he felt.

"I have got to say," Flack said, slapping the table with his hand, "I never thought I would live to see this day. Danny Messer, the player extraordinaire, without any game." Flack threw his had back with laughter.

"Flack, shut up man." Danny had hoped Flack would have some sound advice and did not appreciate the laughter at his expense.

"Alright, alright. Seriously now. I know there's a lot of water under the bridge between you two but didn't you say that you guys were starting fresh, starting over?"

"Yeah," Danny nodded, remembering his toast to Lindsay at Cozy's.

"So, imagine for a second that you'd never met Lindsay before tonight. You see her standing there at the bar. You think she's cute, you like the way she looks in that dress, she looks sexy, you admire that great pair of legs…"

"Enough," Danny said, holding a hand up to stop Flack's description. He did not need to be reminded of how good Lindsay looked and he didn't want those thoughts going through any other guy's mind, even if it was just Flack.

"The Danny I know would go up to her and assess the situation. He'd determine if she was interested – look for the telltale signs. Does she get nervous when you get close? Does she let you buy her a drink? Does she want you to look at her? If affirmative interest was determined he'd probably ask her to dance. But that's the old Danny. I'm not sure what this second-hand, bootleg version of the man I know is thinking."

"It's not the same thing."

"Yes, it is. You have to work for this, man. Just because Lindsay's back doesn't mean she's ready to jump into bed with you. I understand you don't want to scare her away but she did agree to a date with you way back when. We'll just ignore the fact that she stood you up."

"Thanks for the reminder."

"I would bet money that she's still into you but she's probably just as nervous as you are to act on any feelings she might have. So make a move, take it slow. Take advantage of this fresh start."

Danny took a moment to consider Flack's advice, which was actually making sense to him. Flack was right. What was a fresh start if not a chance to start over, do things right? Sure, the teasing and flirting was still there between them, but if he ever wanted it to be more than that he would have to pursue her. "You know Flack, every now and then I think you might actually know what you're talking about."

Danny stood up and gave Flack a pat on the back. Without another word he walked towards Lindsay. He had asked enough women out to know if a female was interested in him and he was about to take the first step in finding out if Lindsay fell into that category.

Lindsay's back was turned to him and she didn't see his approach. Testing, Danny stepped right behind her, as close as he could without actually touching her. "Montana," he said to get her attention.

Lindsay whirled around, bumped into him, and jerked back so abruptly that she almost fell backwards onto the nearby bar stools. Danny grabbed her arm to steady her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"I didn't know you were behind me," she managed to get out, feeling foolish at her clumsiness which was a result of feeling his breath against her neck, and the huskiness of his voice when he said her nickname.

"I never got the chance to tell you how fabulous you look tonight."

"Oh." Her gaze dropped as warm color spread to her cheeks. Her hands, that had been calmly holding her drink a second ago, fluttered and she had to put her glass down or risk dropping it. "Ummm…thanks. You too. I mean… you also look…nice." What was going on with her? Since when did she become a clumsy fool when an attractive man complimented her? Her body hadn't rebelled against her when Mac, Hawkes and Flack had complimented her earlier.

But Danny seemed to have that affect on her. He was just so…handsome and smooth and when he smiled… stop, Lindsay told herself. Stop thinking like that. Everything had been fine with Danny since their 'talk'. They worked, they had conversations, they shared a meal occasionally. But he could look at her in just a certain way and her heart would skip a beat, and a quiet yearning would settle in her stomach. So what was stopping her from acting on it? She'd been giving that question a lot of thought lately. The fact was that things were finally back to normal between them and starting a romantic or even just physical relationship would only complicate just about everything.

Her point had been proven earlier that night when, on her way from the bathroom, she had seen Mac and Peyton in a hallway arguing. Their voices were hushed but she recognized the tense motions from Peyton and the stern expression on Mac's face as hurt and frustration. A lover's quarrel. Mac was back in the ballroom now but Peyton was nowhere to be seen. What would things be like for them tomorrow at work? How did they keep their love life separate from their professional relationship? What a messy situation. She already knew what it felt like not being able to talk to Danny as a friend, confide in him, work with him and she wasn't ready to risk losing that again.

"Would you like to dance?" Danny asked, interrupting her thoughts. He had indeed made her nervous, which pleased him to no end. Only someone who was indifferent would have not gotten nervous at his compliment.

Lindsay's heart dropped to her toes. She was barely functioning with Danny standing next to her, how would she survive being held by him on the dance floor. She could think of no reasonable excuse. "Sure."

She let him lead her onto the floor. Several other couples also decided to take advantage of the slow, enchanting music so the floor was crowded. Danny stopped near the edge and turned her into his arms. He moved his hands to her waist and she became very aware that there was only a thin barrier of dress between them and her skin.

She looked up at him as she put her arms around his neck, the lights jumping across his features. His mussed hair an interesting contrast to his formal attire. His eyes were so blue. He was so male. Lindsay struggled to clear her thoughts. "Tonight was not as boring as I thought it would be."

"I can think of other ways I'd rather spend my evenings," Danny replied. Like in bed. With Lindsay. Unaware of his own actions, he pushed her closer to him, their bodies fitting perfectly together.

Lindsay's pulse quickened. Without thinking, she brushed her fingers against the back of his neck. "I think it's supposed to rain tomorrow." She wasn't even sure what words were coming out of her mouth. All she could think about was how she could stare into his eyes forever. Literally forever. A little sigh escaped from her as his fingers splayed across her back.

"Hmmhh." Danny was pretty sure Lindsay had just said something but he was busy thinking that if he just dipped his head he could finally have that kiss, find out if she tasted as good as he imagined.

Then the music ended and someone bumped into them, breaking the thin bubble that seemed to have formed around them while they danced. Both of them stepped back from each other.

"Thank you," Lindsay said, doing her best to control her voice. "That was nice."

"Yeah." Danny took her arm, almost dragging her across the room. He wanted to deposit her at their table and escape until his mind cleared. The main problem with Flack's plan was that no matter what, he could not act like Lindsay was any other girl. If that was the case he wouldn't have a worry in the world in the first place. It was different with Lindsay Monroe, it was always different.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Readers and reviewers? Are the best. Even better? **Mel60** who graciously beta'd this for me. And for anyone who might be totally frustrated with me/this story, "relief" for poor Danny is on the way in the next chapter ;). Enjoy!

xxxxx

Lindsay stepped into Fortuna's Pizzeria, welcoming the smell of freshly baked dough and garlic that greeted her at the entrance. Not so welcoming were the two gooneys who'd immediately stood up and blocked her from entering further when they noticed her CSI jacket and badge. One was tall and skinny, the other short and heavy.

The pizzeria was a possible crime scene in a homicide she and Danny were investigating. Their vic had traces of pizza dough in a severe burn on his face and Fortuna's was the only pizzeria within a three block radius from where he was found.

Danny had warned her about this place. It was a notorious mob hang out and he'd wanted to check it out himself. But he'd been delayed in a grand jury hearing on another case and Lindsay was restless. Potential evidence could be disappearing and for no good reason. She had two hands and was ready to work so she'd asked Flack to meet her there for backup.

Flack had yet to arrive and Lindsay realized she probably should have waited for him before entering. The large guy had pushed his jacket aside, revealing a gun tucked into his waistband. "Can we help you miss?" he asked. He and his family had an unspoken agreement with the police that they would keep their gambling operation discrete and in turn the police would keep their distance. They were surprised to see this lady cop enter their store and wanted to let her know they did not appreciate her unannounced visit.

"Detective Monroe, CSI." Lindsay held up her badge, doing her best to not to let them know she was a little rattled. "You need to close your doors. This is a crime scene."

"We don't need to do anything young lady," the other guy chimed in.

This is straight out of a gangster movie or episode of The Sopranos, Lindsay thought. The big guy just needed a nickname like Tiny or Little Johnny and it would have been perfect. Lindsay looked around and saw a waitress loading one of the large brick ovens behind the counter. Her right hand was heavily bandaged.

"Looks like a pretty bad burn," Lindsay said to her over the bobsy twins' shoulders.

"Hazard of the job," the girl answered, nervously, shifting her eyes back and forth to the men who'd greeted Lindsay at the door.

Lindsay moved to walk by them but they each grabbed one of her arms to stop her.

"Let me by," Lindsay stated calmly.

"You're not going anywhere," the big guy said and pushed her backwards. It was a small push, but one Lindsay was unprepared for. She tripped over a chair behind her and crashed into the wall, her kit falling from her grasp. The wind that was knocked out of her was immediately replaced with panic. She wouldn't be surprised if everyone in the room was armed, which meant that this could escalate to an extremely dangerous situation. These guys had managed to put her in a vulnerable position, and could easily pull a weapon on her. She quickly scrambled to get her feet back under her before any such thing happened

At that moment Flack entered with two other uniformed officers, his gun pointed. "Hey, tough guys. You know what assaulting an officer means? You familiar with that term? No? Well, let me enlighten you. It means I'm dragging your asses back to the station with me and sticking you in a cell with Butch. Butch is a lonely guy. He'd really enjoy the _company_ of some nice Italian boys like yourself. He'd love you long time. If you don't want that to happen then I suggest you step back and let Detective Monroe here do her thing."

The two men put their hands up in defeat and stepped aside. Flack turned to Lindsay putting a hand on her shoulder, "You alright?" Flack had always thought of Lindsay as tough and smart and even though he knew the unsavory type of people that hung out at the pizza joint he'd had no reservations about her processing the place with backup, and was glad when she'd called him for just that. When he'd seen her fall against the wall as he'd approached his heart started racing, and was only now returning to normal. Even though he worked as a team with the CSIs he always felt protective of them when it came to being out in the field. They got him the evidence he needed to catch the bad guys, and in turn he did his best to make sure they could get that evidence safely. But things here had gotten out of control and quickly.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. It was nothing." She wasn't hurt, just caught off guard by the impact.

"You sure? What happened?"

"They were just trying to scare me away. The fall looked worse than it actually was. I'm fine, really."

"Okay. My guys and I will stay here until you're done."

"Thanks." Lindsay gathered her kit and went behind the counter to start processing. Her hands were shaking, and her breath short. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply several times to calm her nerves. This had felt very different than when she'd gone undercover. That had been a very controlled situation, contingency plans had been in place and she'd known the danger going in. This time, even with Danny's warning, the danger had unexpectedly crept up on her and left her feeling slightly incompetent. She shook her head trying to literally remove those thoughts out of her mind and focused on the work at hand.

xxxxx

Later that evening, Lindsay was in the lab examining the evidence she'd collected from the pizzeria. Something had happened to their vic while he was in there but she couldn't quite figure out what. She wanted to talk to Danny about what she'd found, maybe he'd see something she was missing. She also wanted to talk to him about the incident at the pizzeria, though she knew he would probably not be thrilled with her. She'd been shaken up about it for a better part of the day, but after talking to Mac upon her return to the lab she'd felt better. Mac assured her that she'd done everything right. Unfortunately guys like that were a part of the job and all they could do as CSIs were follow the evidence and keep things by the books.

"Lindsay Monroe!" Danny's shout startled her. Lindsay saw him purposely striding towards her from across the other end of the lab. He looked angry and she wondered what had caused it and why he was directing it at her. Maybe his hearing had not gone well. Or maybe he'd heard about the pizzeria. But he wouldn't be this angry over that, would he?

Danny had just run into Flack, who had filled him in on what had gone down in the pizzeria. He was pissed. He had been explicit with Lindsay that she not go there. Didn't she realize what could've happened? They could've seriously hurt her – or worse – and then what would he do? He came to a halt next to her, hands on his hips with his feet spread apart. A stance that said he was ready for a fight.

His brow was furrowed and his lips slightly pursed. Lindsay only saw him with that expression when he was really upset, usually only during interrogations.

"What's the matter with you?" he asked, the crease in his forehead getting even deeper.

"What are you talking about?" Lindsay asked even though she was pretty sure she already knew.

"Did I or did I not tell you that I would process the pizza place?"

She was wrong. Actually right that this was about earlier, but wrong that he'd get this upset about it. "You did, but…"

"But nothing. You're lucky nothing happened. You shouldn't have gone there. It was foolish."

Lindsay felt her blood start to boil and her jaw clenched. "Excuse me?" she said, doing nothing to hide the anger in her tone.

"You heard me."

"Yes. I did. Loud and clear as a matter of fact. As did everyone else within a mile of this lab." Lindsay turned back to her microscope hoping Danny would get the hint that she didn't want to have this conversation.

"Don't be childish."

_Snap_. Lindsay was pretty sure the loss of her self-control had made an audible crack. She couldn't help her voice from rising. "Foolish! Childish! How did someone as foolish and childish as me ever get this job? What am I even doing here? How did I get here? I'm so confused." Lindsay waved her arms gesturing around the lab, feigning a bewildered expression. "You know, the last time I checked I was not required to get your permission to do my job."

Danny was not prepared for Lindsay's backlash or anger, which only served to fuel his own. He wasn't going to back down until he'd made his point. "No, but we're partners. And, it's not even about that. You must have some sort of death wish, you know that? First going undercover and now this." Danny remembered how scared he'd been that day Lindsay went undercover during the jewelry heist case. He never wanted to see her in that position again, but here she was doing her very best to make sure that exact thing happened.

Lindsay's eyes narrowed with anger. She turned to face Danny head on, mirroring his stance with her hands on her hips. "I did everything by the book. I had back-up. I reported everything to Mac who, by the way, said I handled everything perfectly. There was no reason for me not to go. There was nothing for me to do in the lab so why should I risk losing evidence just because you have some sort of macho guy complex or …I don't even know what your problem is, really." She'd always been amused by how Danny talked with his hands, but she seemed to have lost all control of hers, which were flailing in every direction at this point.

Danny leaned into her and pointed his finger at her to punctuate his next statement. "You. You are the one with the complex. A hero complex or something. Think you need to save the day, everyday."

"This has nothing to do with saving the day. It has everything to do with my ability to do my job, which you seem to doubt for some reason."

Even though it only happened in cartoons, Danny wouldn't have been surprised if steam started to come out of Lindsay's ears. He took a deep breath and leaned against the lab table, trying to get his emotions under control. He covered his eyes with his hand. He wasn't even sure what upset him more at this point – that Lindsay had risked going to the pizzeria or that she attributed his concern to a question of professionalism, instead of his caring for her.

Lindsay could feel the situation diffusing and crossed her arms. "Did we just have our first fight?"

Danny couldn't help smiling. He looked at Lindsay. "Yeah, I think we did."

"OK, well, as long as we're clear that I won, then let's just get past this." Lindsay was hoping that returning to their usual teasing banter would end this little spat.

"Lindsay…" Danny knew what she was doing but wasn't ready to let it drop just yet. "I'm sorry that I yelled at you, but I really wish you had listened to me. I've seen what guys like that can do and it's not pretty. Guys like that almost killed Louie and if they had done anything to you, taken you from me, then…" The words flowed from him without thought, and he'd surprised even himself with what he'd said. He stopped before anything else came out that he might regret.

Lindsay had not expected that from him. He rarely talked about his brother. And concern like that usually only came from people who…really cared about you. The realization hit Lindsay like a ton of bricks, leaving her speechless.

Danny and Lindsay just stood there, silently looking at each other, waiting for the other to do something next, to make things not awkward.

"Danny, Lindsay where are you guys with your case?" Mac's question sliced through the air, breaking their eye contact and turning their focus to their boss.

With another quick glance to Danny, Lindsay proceeded to update Mac.

"I gotta check something at DNA," Danny said, excusing himself and walking away. He'd never known anyone who could run him through a gamut of emotions like Lindsay did. On a daily basis he found himself aroused, frustrated, elated, angry and everything in between. He wasn't sure how much longer he could take it.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N**: As always, thank you for the reviews. And for those who just read, thank you too. I struggled with this chapter a bit so I'd love to know what you think about it.

There is not a sufficient adjective to describe the thank you I'd like to give to **mel60** who beta'd this for me and made it so much better than I would've on my own – so I won't even try to think of one.

I forgot to include in my last chapter's note that I borrowed the pizzeria case from Season 1. I never meant to take credit for that.

Finally, this chapter has a sense of finality to it but there is still more to come. The adventures of Danny and Lindsay will continue after this! Enjoy!

xxxx

Lindsay's big plans for her Sunday off were to sleep in, go to the gym, do some shopping and catch up on her errands.

That plan had fallen apart early when she found herself awake and restless, at five in the morning, staring at the ceiling. Every time she drifted remotely close to sleep thoughts of Danny crept into her mind, keeping sleep at a distance.

She flipped sides for the millionth time, willing her mind to rest. A big part of her restlessness was due to the fact that she hadn't seen Danny since their squabble in the lab. She felt like neither of them had lingering anger or resentment over their argument, but she wished her case and then day off hadn't prevented her from at least talking to him and making sure things were okay.

The realization that she had no legitimate reason to avoid a relationship with Danny had also been wreaking havoc on her mind. She'd always been a reasonable person and reason, up to this point, had told her that a relationship was too risky. Rational thoughts, however, were losing out to the impulses in her gut that were screaming at her to be with him. Be with Danny Messer. That idea had her giddy and smiling at herself as she lay in bed.

Her gut instincts are what told her to apply to the New York position in the first place, and so far that decision had turned out fine. When she'd first started she was too focused to think about anything other than her work. But Danny's unique charm had slowly won her over and her attraction to him had steadily grown with each day. His nickname and teasing initially irritated her, but she'd learned that was just his way and gave back as good as she got from him. She remembered teasing him about the walrus documentary - that was the first time she ever felt comfortable joking around with him.

Despite his temper and tough exterior he'd proven himself to be a loyal and thoughtful co-worker and friend. He'd helped her with cases he wasn't even assigned to and given her support when she'd get overwhelmed. Like the time she'd lost her cool with a suspect after Stella had been attacked by Frankie – she would have been embarrassed if anyone else had tried to calm her down and wasn't sure anyone else would have been able to.

And then, of course, there was the way he always stood so close to her even when he didn't need to, and the way she never moved back because she liked feeling his body heat, smelling his cologne. She found herself looking forward to working with him and missing him when she didn't. There was a time towards the end of their first year together when they could have started something, but then came that call from the Montana D.A., and her no-show at her date with Danny. Everything had gone downhill from there.

Since then she'd been too nervous to mess things up. Foolish. That's what Danny had called her and that's exactly how she'd been acting. Foolish and afraid. She'd initially been too blinded by her anger during their argument to see it, but he'd been devastated at the thought of anyone hurting her or possibly losing her. He'd also put her on the same level as his brother – someone she knew meant a lot to Danny despite their rocky history. Danny cared about her. If she were being totally honest she'd have to admit that she knew that a long time ago – ever since she'd gone undercover. She'd also have to admit that she cared for him just as much. For reasons she couldn't totally wrap her own mind around she'd ignored that fact and resisted the truth. But she was done with that now. Lindsay just hoped it wasn't too late.

xxxxx

After concluding that sleep would never come, Lindsay had gotten out of bed and did everything imaginable to pass time until Danny's shift started. She'd eaten a leisurely breakfast, went grocery shopping, worked out for two hours, and cleaned her apartment from top to bottom.

Finally she'd set off to find Danny at work. She'd immediately run into Mac at the lab and made some excuse about last minute paperwork when he'd asked what she was doing there on her day off. She'd walked through all the labs twice, checked the locker room, swung by their office but had been unable to find Danny anywhere. Her plan had not taken into account that he could have been anywhere in the city on a case. Her plan called for her to find Danny and let him know how she felt about him. The excitement of finally telling Danny that was starting to wane as Lindsay realized she might have to wait until tomorrow. What if her voice of reason bullied her instincts into hiding overnight? The words she wanted to say so badly to Danny were at the tip of her tongue and she was afraid they'd disappear forever if she didn't say them soon. Disappointed that her plan had been thwarted, Lindsay headed down the hallway towards the elevator.

"Lindsay? What brings you to the lab this fine 'morn.'morn?"?" Sid's question interrupted her thoughts as he stepped in stride with her.

"Hey Sid. I just had to…finish some paperwork," Lindsay answered, doing her best to hide her disappointment with a crooked smile.

"Ahh, yes. Paperwork. We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming." Lindsay tilted her head, trying to understand what he'd just said. Seeing Lindsay's confusion Sid elaborated, "It's a quote from Wernher von Braun, considered to be the father of the space program."

"Oh. I see." Sid seemed to be an endless fount of random trivia and factoids.

Since she'd asked practically everyone else she'd come across at the lab she gave her plan one last-ditch effort. "You haven't seen Danny around have you?"

"He actually switched shifts with Hawkes today. He has the day off."

_Yes_, Lindsay thought, fighting a smile and the urge to pump her fist in triumph. Her disappointment was quickly replaced with the anticipation of being able to have her talk with Danny. She decided she needed to get to him immediately and didn't have time to wait for the elevator.

"I'm going to take the stairs," she told Sid. "I'll see you tomorrow." She practically sprinted to the stairwell and down the stairs. Operation Danny was back in action.

xxxxx

Lindsay found herself standing outside of Danny's apartment with her hands in her pockets, rocking on her heels. She'd been pretty confident about her plan until she actually reached his door. There'd been a couple of false starts since she'd arrived, lifting her hand to knock but dropping it before making contact with the door. Fear or nerves or some combination of both were paralyzing her and she was having a hard time putting together coherent thoughts over the thundering of her heartbeat in her ears. What if he wasn't there? What if he wasn't alone? What if he was still angry at her? What if, what if, what if. She was tired of what ifs, and finally knocked before she lost her courage. There was no answer after a few moments, and Lindsay wasn't sure if she was relieved or disappointed. She was about to turn and leave when Danny finally opened the door.

"Montana?" Danny asked, his eyebrows creasing together in disbelief, shocked to see Lindsay at his door. As was usually the case whenever he saw her, his heart quickened and his body went on alert, waiting for the sensory overload that accompanied any encounter with Lindsay Monroe. She was the last person he'd expected at his door and while she was a welcomed visitor, he was tense about this unusual visit. His mind raced trying to figure out what had brought her here. Was this about their argument? A case? Something else? She looked different. It must be the casual clothes she was wearing - jeans and a hoody. He was used to seeing her in more formal clothes at work. She also looked tired and Danny wondered if something was wrong. "What's going on? Everything okay?" he asked.

"I'm sorry to bother you. I…can…can I come in?" Lindsay asked, noticing his wet hair. He looked and smelled like he'd just gotten out of the shower. He was wearing jeans and a blue t-shirt. Oh god, why did he have to be wearing blue. He looked so good in blue. Distractingly good. Blue made his eyes sparkle. Blue made his eyes feel like lasers on her body. Danny in blue made her feel like he could look at her in a certain way and she'd surrender to his any wish. The nervousness she'd felt before she knocked only multiplied by a thousand when he'd opened the door and having to look at an especially sexy Danny did not help her. Her palms were sweaty and vocal cords barely functioning.

"Sure." He stepped aside to let her pass. This was strange, he thought. Why wasn't Lindsay coming right out with what she wanted? Danny felt an ominous vibe in the air. Lindsay was being secretive...or something…and it had him on edge.

Lindsay stepped into Danny's apartment and took a quick look around. She'd only ever met Danny outside his building and was interested to see his home. It was simple, contemporary, clean. Light brown walls with brown leather sofas. She was surprised by the artwork that peppered his walls – various portraits and landscapes done in bright colors. She would have never pegged him as an art person, but that's why she was here – there was so much that she wanted to know about Danny Messer. "I love your artwork," she said, hoping idle conversation would calm her nerves.

"Thanks. I collect it, some of its been done by friends."

"That's great."

"Yeah."

Awkward silence. That's exactly what Lindsay had hoped to avoid but she felt herself chickening out. She just stood there, looking at anything and everything except Danny. She racked her brain thinking of an excuse of why she'd come that made some modicum of sense, but nothing was coming to her.

"Can I get you something to drink?" Danny asked as he made his way into the kitchen adjacent to the living room, finally breaking the silence. Lindsay was acting strangely and he couldn't figure out why. First, she'd come to see him on his day off. Now, she seemed to be keeping her reason for visiting under wraps. He was pretty sure it wasn't to check out his home décor and he wanted to get to the bottom of her visit. "I thought today was your day off?" he asked as he came back into the living room and handed her a bottle of water.

"It is…I…um..." Lindsay stopped herself before she rambled even more. Giving herself a mental pep talk she repeated to herself 'you're fine, you're ready', 'you're fine, you're ready." Taking a firm hold on her courage she finally asked, "Danny, would you like to go out with me…to dinner…on a date…an official date." There. She'd done it. That was the first step of her master plan. To ask Danny Messer out on a date, an official date. Danny had always been the one to pursue things and she'd done nothing but push him away. Now it was her turn to put herself out there. In her sleep-deprived mind earlier that morning, it had made total sense, but now in the reality of the moment, she was starting to second-guess herself.

Danny couldn't help but smile widely. That had not been one of the reasons he'd thought had brought Lindsay to his home, but he couldn't have imagined anything more perfect. He'd been pretty sure she'd come to either talk about a case or their argument at the lab. In a lot of ways he wasn't surprised by her invitation, just surprised that she'd actually extended it. There was obviously something between them and he felt like they had been on the brink of a tipping point the past couple of weeks. Things would have to swing one way or the other - they would either just be friends or something more. He'd reluctantly accepted that they were headed to friendship territory and wasn't sure how he'd survive with just that, but Lindsay had other plans and that had caused an unfamiliar tugging sensation around his heart.

"An official date? Now, explain to me how that's different than a regular date." Danny couldn't resist teasing Lindsay. She was squirming, fidgeting with the hem of her hoody.

Lindsay looked at the floor. Great, she thought, Danny was bringing the jokes when she was trying to be serious. She wasn't about to be side-tracked, however, and finally met his gaze. "Danny, I just wanted to let you know that I enjoy your company. That I'm attracted to you. That I want to spend more time with you, get to know you better. That I want to be with you." She'd never been so forward with her feelings before and was surprised at how easily the words came. But she felt embarrassed and vulnerable with them finally out in the open – for Danny to reject or laugh at or who knows what. It was a crazy thing, Lindsay thought, having your heart in someone else's hands, and she'd just willingly handed hers over to Danny. But that's why she'd come here - she was ready for whatever he chose to do with it.

Danny's mouth opened to reply then shut when nothing came out. He needed a moment to recover from the surprise and arousal her statement had stirred in him. He felt like he'd waited a lifetime to hear those words though it had only really been about a year, which was still plenty long. Ever since Lindsay had returned from Montana he'd needed her to be the one to move things forward between them and she had finally done it. The wave of relief that washed over him almost made him stagger backwards. He wondered what had changed her mind. He would have to thank whoever or whatever it was later. "Ditto Montana. I would love to go out with you."

The tight knot that had been residing in Lindsay's stomach finally unwound itself, releasing all the pressure and tension that had been building inside her for weeks. She smiled at Danny. "Great. How about tonight? Seven? Meet me at my apartment?"

"Sure." Boy, when Montana wanted something she sure went for it. Not that he was complaining. Danny was happy to be on the receiving end of her personal directive. He was more than happy, actually. He was having a hard time pin pointing how he felt because he'd never experienced anything quite like this before. It certainly felt different than when other women had agreed to go on a date with him. A date. He was finally going on a date with Montana. But this was about more than just a date. 'Be with you'. Those were the words she'd used and they were echoing in his mind, sending vibrations down his entire body.

He'd teased her about calling her invitation an official date, but he knew what she meant. This was not just a lunch during work, or hanging out at a bar with everyone else, or a night at Cozy's to see Mac perform. It would be just them, one-on-one. Then, he'd be able to partake in traditional post-date activities, like maybe a kiss. Maybe more.

Danny was looking at her with such a lustful gaze that a shivery thrill shot up Lindsay's spine and she felt the sudden urge to leave. She was pretty sure of the kinds of thoughts going through his mind to make him look at her like that and she was even more sure she wouldn't be able to resist making those thoughts reality if stayed another minute. She did not think that jumping into bed with him would be the best way to kick-off this new relationship. "Okay. I should go. See you later then." She hastily walked towards the door but Danny blocked her retreat by stepping right in front of her. _Right_ in front of her. Standing an inch part, even without touching him, she could feel him. The heat radiating from him. She tipped her head back to meet his gaze. 

"You feel that?" Danny asked. There was no way he could wait until tonight to get a least a taste of Lindsay Monroe.

"What?"

"That connection." Danny lowered his head, keeping his mouth just above hers. He heard her sharp intake of breath and still waited. Finally her lips parted, just barely but that's all Danny needed to know that this was for real. The invisible barrier of restraint that had slowly built around them from all the accidental touches in the lab, the teasing, the stolen glances, and the undercurrents of feelings finally came crashing down. He rubbed his lips over hers, lightly and slowly. He brought his hands to her waist to pull her against him.

"Hmmm," was all Lindsay could get out. Maybe jumping into bed was not such a bad idea. Arousal washed over her from his brief touch and her hands fluttered to grip his shoulders, afraid she wouldn't be able to stand on her own. Danny continued nibbling on her lips and placing light kisses along her jaw.

"You don't know how long I've been dying to do this," Danny said as he had his fill of it, pleasing himself and destroying Lindsay in the process, the pressure building inside her until she thought she'd explode.

"Danny," Lindsay whispered. She had a request in her tone but she wasn't sure what she was asking for. Danny stopped his ministrations to look at her. Her eyes were closed, her breathing erratic and her lips parted. He brought his hands up to cup her face as his mouth took hers deeper and hotter. He took his time savoring her. He wanted to enjoy this and remember it forever. The way she tasted, fit perfectly against him. Not that he thought he'd ever forget. Even when her fingernails dug into him, he took his time.

Lindsay wrapped her arms around Danny's neck, surprised by the fierce desire that surged through her body as his tongue seduced hers. She thought she might die from it, but what a great way to go. His arms went around her and she could feel the size and hardness of him pressing against the part of her aching with need.

She shivered in anticipation as he unzipped her hoody. He slipped it off her shoulders and traced a finger along the swell of her breasts. Danny wanted to take this further and was pretty sure Lindsay was on the same page but he had to be sure.

"Lindsay, why don't we get to know each other better…later?" he asked huskily.

"Yes," was all she said as she brought his mouth back to hers. There was no doubt in her mind that this was right. It felt perfect. Danny laughed as he scooped her up and carried her down the hallway to his bedroom.

She expected speed and would have welcomed it, but when Danny put her on the bed she was met with slow and devastating hands and lips. He lifted her tank top over head and her bra quickly followed. Lindsay's fingers gripped the hem of his t-shirt and lifted it up and over his body. God he was gorgeous, she thought. Lean muscles and smooth skin. Her hands roamed over his chest and stomach and she felt him quiver underneath her fingers.

He grabbed her hands to stop her distracting touch. He brought his mouth back to hers, diving into another kiss as he unbuttoned her jeans and slid them and her underwear down her legs.

She had only a moment's awareness of her complete nakedness until Danny's hands found her breasts. She moaned when he skimmed his thumbs over her nipples. He watched her lashes flutter, pleasure flickering over her face. His mouth lowered, his breath giving her advance warning of his tongue's attack on her sensitized skin, torturing her. All Lindsay could do was clutch at his hair and run her hands along his back.

His hands moved down, over her stomach, moving lower until they hovered right above her center that was aching for his touch. Her hips lifted instinctively, inviting his touch. His fingers traced circles along her thighs, darting close but never quite touching her where she wanted him to the most. With another deep kiss he finally moved his hand between her thighs, sliding lower and inside her. Lindsay gasped and shuddered at what he was doing to her.

His mouth soon followed his fingers. When she moaned and lifted her hips, he ran his tongue up, then into her. Shocked by the sudden change and pleasure she arched into him even more. He greedily took her, and tasted her until she exploded beneath him, her body bucking, his name gasping from her lips. Her reaction ripped through him, forcing him to struggle with his control.

Lindsay hadn't fully recovered from that onslaught but she was ready for more. Her hands pulled at him until she found his mouth with hers. His skin was damp and slippery. She raced her lips over his neck and shoulders and pressed herself against him. She tugged at his jeans, fighting them down his hips. "Danny. Now. Please."

Danny took in the sight of her - her hair tumbled over the pillow, her chocolate eyes bright, her body languid. Danny wanted her more in that moment than he'd ever wanted anything else before. "Look at me Lindsay. Look at me."

When her gaze finally met his, he drove into her and watched her eyes glass over. Her nails dug into his back, ran over his hips, dragged through his hair while her body met his every thrust. He felt her climax tear through her and his release quickly followed as he groaned into her neck, his mind emptying of any thought except that Lindsay Monroe was finally his.

xxxxx

Lindsay lay in the cradle of Danny's arms. He held her there waiting for his functioning to return to normal.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Mmmm," she replied, making Danny smile. Her fingers were tracing the ridge of muscle on his lower stomach that formed the V of his hips, something she found extremely sexy.

"That good, huh?"

Yes, that good and better Lindsay thought, but she wouldn't give Danny that satisfaction. "Actually, I have to say I'm a little disappointed. You know I should probably go." She said giving his chest a pat. She wrapped a sheet around her body and started to get off the bed.

Danny lifted a brow in surprise, but only for a second. He pulled a corner of the sheet that trailed behind Lindsay, causing her to fall back onto the bed in laughter. "Very funny Montana."

"Well, I guess I can give you another shot."

"You know what they say, practice makes perfect," Danny said as he settled Lindsay back against him, his arm anchoring her to him at her waist. He looked at his watch. "We can fit in a lot of practice in between now and our official date."

Lindsay turned in his arms so that she was facing him. His eyes were closed and she studied him. How had she almost let this guy get away? Thank god she had come to her senses. Look at what she'd been missing. But it was so much more than great sex. She wanted to know everything about him, and then some. "I'm serious about that date, you know."

"You'll get it. I just need some sleep and then another one or two or five practice sessions and then I'm good to go." It was a blissful thing, Danny thought, to lay like this with Lindsay. This is what he wanted now, later, tomorrow, and forever. He'd never let her get away again.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Taking a break from the angsty tension for a fluffy look into Danny and Lindsay's relationship now that they're dating.

As always, a tremendously huge thanks to **mel60** who beta'd this for me.

xxxxx

Danny Messer had a problem. A serious problem. An addiction, really. He was totally addicted to Lindsay Monroe, he thought to himself as he sat in his office. He always wanted to be with her and couldn't stop thinking about her when he wasn't. Like now, for example. He and Lindsay had driven into work together but he hadn't seen her since they'd parted ways that morning for their respective cases. He'd taken the long way around the labs more than once in hopes that he'd run into her. He'd already called her to see what she was doing for lunch, and had to stop himself from calling her hourly just to hear her voice. Sitting in their office had become his guilty pleasure as it was filled with her scent. He'd anticipated, with time, that this need would fade but instead it only intensified. His interest in the other women he'd dated started to decrease like clockwork after the first few weeks, but he knew that would never happen with Montana. And who could blame him. Lindsay Monroe filled his life with contentment.

Since they'd started dating a few months ago he'd done nothing but smile. Lindsay was fun and funny, smart, and interesting. She was sweet and playful. He'd known a lot of these things about her before but now he got to experience them first hand. She was also sexy and he especially enjoyed experiencing that side of her on a regular basis. No one would ever guess that underneath her country manners and cool professionalism was a sensual and hot woman. But there was - and he liked it.

Like last Sunday. They both had the day off and we're spending the afternoon lounging around his apartment watching movies. Love of movies was something they had in common and had held many movie marathons over the past couple of months. _Little Miss Sunshine_, her choice, had just finished and they were starting _Casino_ _Royale_, his choice. He was lazily stretched out on his sofa when she'd innocently brought him a bowl popcorn, but within minutes they were tangled up in each other with popcorn everywhere. Or the time she joined him in the shower. Slippery and playfully they'd made love to each other in the confines of his bathtub. Even just a kiss from her could be the most erotic experience.

But Lindsay had enriched his life outside of the bedroom as well. He'd shared so much with her about his life and she with him. He'd grazed over his family's troubled history and their connection to crime. Even though she already knew about Louie, it was still a sensitive subject for him and he didn't want to scare her away. Other than that, he always found himself wanting to tell her things – fill her in on his day, even when they worked the same case, share something funny he'd read in the newspaper, tell her the comings and going of his family. She could hold her own in any conversation - sports, news, politics – and even his friends had openly welcomed her into their circle. He would never forget Lindsay debating his friend Mike on the validity of the designated hitter in baseball - Mike hated it while Lindsay favored it - and the ramifications of the war – Mike was pro-war while she was against it - in the same conversation. It had become heated at times, on both subjects, but concluded with Mike giving Lindsay a bear hug at the end of the night. He knew he had a good thing when his mother had told him that Lindsay was a 'good catch' – her seal of approval.

"Hey, how's your case going?" Lindsay's question interrupted his thoughts as she walked into the office and sat at her desk to check her email. It was interesting what a difference a few months and several official dates could make. Before, being around Lindsay would have his heart racing and his body tense. Now, a sense of tranquility washed over Danny as it did every time he saw her. It was if internally his body sighed with contentment. There were no questions about where they stood with each other. They were together; they were a couple – a concept that pleased him to no end. These days his heart only raced when it should – when he was making love to her, which was frequently.

"Alright. Just waiting for DNA."

"Yeah, Adam's pretty backed up. Dinner at my place tonight? " she asked. They met up for dinner every day after work. It had become their routine, but it was far from boring. They would alternate between different restaurants, ordering in and homemade meals at each other's homes. In fact, Lindsay wanted to try out a new recipe on him tonight.

"More of your sardine surprise?" Danny joked. He made a pretty mean pasta sauce, but Lindsay definitely had the upper hand on overall culinary skills.

Lindsay flicked a paper clip at him. "Very funny. How does a steak sound? This big, this thick." Lindsay demonstrated with her fingers.

"Make it well-done and you've got a deal."

"Great. Good luck with your case. See you later." She gave his hand a light, quick squeeze and left their office.

Danny leaned back in his chair, clasping his hands behind his head. Lindsay Monroe was definitely a good catch.

xxxxx

"Hey," Lindsay greeted Danny's arrival at her doorstep with a smile. The sight of him still made her heart skip and made her feel like a school girl with a crush. But gone was the tension that had surrounded them for so long. Instead their time together was filled with comfortable excitement.

She always looked forward to this time when they could be together outside of work, with death and crime behind them – at least for a few hours. Not to say several of their dates – and _practice sessions_ – hadn't been interrupted by calls from Mac. Considering they shared an occupation, and workplace, they couldn't totally keep work from their personal life but they did their best to leave their cases at the lab.

But when a case was especially difficult, Lindsay had come to appreciate the shoulder Danny offered because he understood exactly where she was coming from. She still sometimes struggled with cases involving young girls and dealing with their mothers. Danny always knew how to reassure her at work and comfort her when she couldn't fall asleep at night. There were many things she'd come to appreciate about Danny since they'd started dating. He was more sensitive than she'd realized and had a variety of interests that she loved sharing with him – baseball, art, motorcycles, museums.

She'd also shared more of herself with Danny than she had with any other man in her life before. Her past, her hopes, her fears. She was surprised at how quickly they delved into that territory but they'd already learned so much about each other since meeting at the zoo that they had nowhere to go but deeper. He'd been patient with her, giving her the time she needed to not feel rushed and he'd accepted all of her flaws, big and small – the way she worried too much, to the way she snoozed her alarm for two hours before getting out of bed.

Everyone at work knew about their relationship and seemed more relieved than surprised. Stella had commented that it was about time. Considering Mac's own intra-office relationship they knew he wouldn't have a problem with it, but they also knew that he'd appreciate them following his example and keeping things discrete. They kept their displays of affection to quick touches and stolen kisses in the locker room. Or supply closet. Or in the lab late at night. She definitely had a hard time keeping her hands off of him – Danny could turn her on with a simple smirk. He was giving her such a smirk now.

"Hi" he said, circling his arms around her waist and giving her a light peck on the lips.

"Would you like a drink?"

"Sure."

Neither of them moved.

"Hungry?" Lindsay asked.

"Yes," Danny answered as his lips made their way down her neck.

"Ready for dinner?"

"No." Danny was starving, but not for the steak Lindsay had promised. He was craving her. He threw her over his shoulder, causing Lindsay to yelp, and marched them to her bedroom.

Setting Lindsay down, Danny sat down on the edge of the bed and drew her between his knees. His piercing stare alone had Lindsay aroused and aching for his touch. As if reading her mind, he traced his fingers over her stomach and breasts.

"Take your clothes off." Danny's request sent shivers down Lindsay's body. He usually was the one to pull her clothes off, whether it was hastily in the heat of passion or slowly when he wanted to tease her. She was so aware of his stare as she removed her shirt then jeans that she wasn't sure how her fingers were functioning properly to undress.

Danny watched as she pulled her bra straps off her shoulders and reached back to unclasp it. It fell away leaving her breasts bared for his eyes. He followed her thumbs as they hooked into her panties and pushed them down her thighs. There was no seductiveness about her movements, no showing off. It was if she was just undressing at the end of the day. Somehow that was sexier to him than if she'd done a full-on strip tease.

Danny kissed her stomach and Lindsay moaned. She drew his head forward, pressing his lips against her nipples. Lindsay relished in the torturous pleasure he offered when his mouth opened to her.

Keeping his mouth on her breasts, Danny parted her thighs with his hand and gently massaged her wet center. Lindsay gasped as his fingers explored her. Tiny shocks of pleasure seemed to travel from his tongue, into her body, down her stomach and electrified his fingers. She softly cried his name.

Danny lay back on the bed, pulling Lindsay over him. She quickly undid his pants and lowered herself onto him. It didn't take long for both of them to find their release, ripples of pleasure coursing through bodies.

Completely sated, Lindsay lay on Danny's chest listening to the beat of his heart as they gradually came back down to earth. A low grumble from his stomach caught Lindsay's attention. She lifted her head to look at Danny with a smirk. "Ready for dinner now?" she asked.


	10. Chapter 10

"Don't go breaking my heart!" Danny was sharing the stage with Lindsay during Cozy's weekly Thursday karaoke night, shouting the lyrics of the Elton John and Kiki Dee duet so loudly that the microphone he was holding was completely unnecessary. Mac, Stella, Hawkes and Flack were in the crowd cheering them on.

Everyone had decided to go to Cozy's after finishing a tough case to unwind and relax. Danny's seventh beer had brought with it the brilliant idea of participating in the karaoke competition and he'd managed to talk Lindsay into it as well. She'd adamantly refused at first. He'd tried guilt - he would never, ever get to karaoke a duet and it would be all because of her. He switched to whispering promises of what he'd do for her and to her back at home if she did it. She still wasn't budging and he resorted to plain out begging. It was only after he accused her of only being able to karaoke cheesy country songs in hick bars back in Montana - and getting her another glass of wine – that Lindsay finally relented.

"I couldn't if I tried," Lindsay sang, equaling Danny's volume. She had chosen the song, as it was one of the few duets she actually knew. She was never one for karaoke but the extra two glasses of wine she shouldn't have had dulled her usual reservations about public singing demonstrations.

"Honey if I get restless!" Danny was emphasizing each word with a dramatic swing of his body, bringing him perilously close to the edge of the stage

"Baby you're not that kind!" Though she knew the words by heart, she had a hard time getting them out over her laughter at Danny's familiarity with the lyrics. He was belting them out without even looking at the monitor.

Together, they bellowed the chorus, oblivious to the fact that their timing was off and that Lindsay finished a full line behind Danny. She had laughed through the entire song, though at that point anything and everything brought on a fit of giggles.

They ended the song to a big round of applause, with Flack doing an Arsenio Hall holler and fist roll. What they lacked in actual talent, they made up for in alcohol-induced enthusiasm and the crowd seemed to appreciate their effort.

Danny wrapped his arm around Lindsay's shoulder as they made their way to back to their table.

"Great job guys," Stella complimented.

"Yeah, if by great, you mean totally off key and off tempo," Flack joked.

Mac came to his CSIs' defense. "Flack, you should only criticize if you're willing to go up there yourself. It's not easy getting up on that stage."

"That's right," Danny said. "Let's see what you got."

Flack threw his hands up in surrender, "There's no way I'm getting up there. You win. You have more balls than I do. But if I ever did, I would never pick such an awful song."

"Hey!" Lindsay shouted defensively. "That's, like, the best song ever."

"Yeah," Danny joined in. "And you know what? It's true. I would never go breaking this girl's heart," Danny pulled Lindsay close to kiss the top of her head. "I love this girl."

That caused another bout of giggles from Lindsay. She'd heard the words but the enormity of them were not sinking into her chardonnay-clouded mind. It also caused several looks of surprise from everyone at the table. Did Danny just say the "L" word? Mac had predicted this day would come for Danny, but even he was surprised at the admission.

Recognizing that maybe everyone had one too many drinks Mac said, "Why don't we call it a night guys."

xxxx

Lindsay and Danny had decided to walk to his apartment since it was closest and were finally stumbling into his bedroom. Danny flopped onto the bed without even removing his shoes. Lindsay was hopping on one foot, struggling with the zipper on her boots. When she finally succeeded in changing into one of Danny's t-shirts she fell into bed, curling up next to him.

"Kiss me goodnight," Danny murmured.

She reached up to place a light peck his lips, but it turned into an intense kiss that left her trembling. "I want to make love to you," he said, rubbing his hand along her side.

Lindsay thought that was an excellent idea and crawled to the top of the bed to throw off the pillows and push back the covers. It took her a while, as she was having problems with her equilibrium, and when she finally made her way back to Danny, she was greeted by his soft snore. He was fast asleep. Oh well, Lindsay thought and removed Danny's shoes for him and pulled the covers over him.

"I love you too, Danny Messer," she whispered before she quickly joined him in drunken sleep.

xxxxx

At lunch the next day Lindsay and Danny were still both nursing hangovers.

"I'm never drinking ever again," Lindsay stated as she walked into the break room where Danny was already sitting. There was no way she could stomach any kind of food but she'd come for another bottle of water and some more Tylenol.

"Famous last words," Danny said, not lifting his head from resting comfortably on the table.

"What were we thinking? I mean 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'?" Lindsay remembered walking to Danny's apartment at the end of the night – her feet were still killing her from making that walk in heels - but other than that her memory of the previous night had a lot of gaps. Stella, however, had mortifyingly filled her in on her and Danny's duet.

"You picked it." Danny finally lifted his head. His memory was also fuzzy and he'd gotten his recap from Flack. Danny tended to run his mouth when he drank too much and he'd asked Flack if he'd said anything he shouldn't have, especially considering Mac was there. Flack had given him a funny look but had said no. Thank god, he'd thought, karaoke was embarrassing enough.

"Well you apparently owned it. The second coming of Elton John according to Stella."

"Let's agree that the next time we're anywhere near karaoke, one of has to stay sober, make sure we don't have a repeat of last night."

"Deal." Lindsay took a seat next to Danny and gulped her water.

"I don't think we were as bad as people are saying anyway. From what I heard, we had a lot of crowd support. We make a good team, Montana, but if we ever do find ourselves doing karaoke, I'm picking the song. I gotta get back to work." Danny stood up and pinched Lindsay on her side, making her jump. That was a ticklish spot for her and he enjoyed getting that jolt out of her.

"Yeah, yeah." Lindsay said. They did make a good team. She wasn't sure how well that translated onto a karaoke stage but she knew it was working everywhere else and she couldn't be happier.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** This was the hardest chapter ever for me to write, but with the help of the fabulous **mel60** who beta'd this for me I got through it.

Thanks again for reading and reviewing!

xxxxx

"You ever seen anything like this, Messer?" Flack asked Danny, pointing to their latest victim. There was nothing unusual about a young male, found stabbed to death inside a bookstore. The fact that the body was suspended to the back wall of the store with a book glued into each of his hands and pockets was what had everyone curious.

"This is definitely up there on the list of crazy crime scenes," Danny said, taking in the body for the first time. "This city is never at a shortage of strange and unusual, that's for sure. Especially lately." He leaned in to get a closer look. The back of the victim, from shoes to hair, was covered in some sort of glue.

"Monroe already photographed the scene and is looking into the glue," he said, pointing to Lindsay outside the glass storefront, talking on her cell phone. Danny followed Flack's finger and couldn't help from smiling at the sight of her. Even from where he was standing he could see she had that look on her face – the look she got whenever she was determined to figure something out. Her pursed lips and wide eyes were telltale signs. He'd become familiar with that look while working cases with her, but had also seen it outside of work. He'd made the mistake the other night of telling her that he didn't have an erogenous zone outside of the obvious areas. Lindsay did not believe him. She got that look on her face and he knew he was in trouble. An hour later she had explored every inch of his body with her lips and been proven right when a kiss to the back of his knee had elicited a groan from him.

Danny's stare and smile were not missed by Flack who never thought he'd see the day when Danny was totally smitten, but it had arrived thanks to one Lindsay Monroe. He was happy for the pair – happy that they were happy. He also liked to take credit for getting them together, seeing that he was the one to properly motivate Danny to go after Lindsay the night of the Governor's Ball. "Are you glad you listened to me or what?"

"What are you talking about?" Danny turned his attention back to Don.

"I told you to start fresh with Lindsay and it worked. You guys are like teenagers in love."

"Woah, slow down there, Flack. We didn't get together because of you. You're no Dr. Ruth so don't quit your day job. And who said anything about love?"

The truth was, he did love Lindsay. He'd come to that conclusion pretty quickly. Lindsay was perfect. Sure she was flawed, but that was part of her perfection. He liked doing everything with her – from working to talking over coffee in the morning to doing dishes. And what was that saying about the ideal woman being a lady in the street but a freak in the bed? Or was that a song? Either way, that was Lindsay. He'd never met a woman before that he could imagine himself being with for the rest of his life. That idea filled him with pure elation, but it also scared him. First, love and marriage were never in his game plan. All his other relationships were casual and more physical than anything else. Love was never even a remote thought. But Lindsay had elicited these feelings from him that came so strongly and quickly that he wasn't sure how to react. Second, what if Lindsay didn't feel the same way? It would destroy him. If he admitted his feelings and she didn't share them then that would probably mean the end for them. There was no way he was going to let that happen. That's why he had yet to let her know how he felt. He needed to get everything sorted out in his mind before doing or saying anything. "What kind of wacko would do something like this?" Danny nodded towards the body hoping to distract Flack from the topic.

Flack smiled at Danny's discomfort with the conversation. Love had sucker-punched the boy so hard that Danny didn't even know what hit him. Flack wasn't surprised. This was a man who once told him that Valentines Day was a fabricated holiday and an excuse for girls to get their guys to spend money on them. This was a man who saw diamonds as simply an alatrope of carbon instead of a romantic gift. It was also the man who ran the other way as soon as a girl even whispered anything that sounded like 'getting serious' or 'moving in'. He'd figure it out soon enough, Flack thought. "And what was he or she trying to say by doing this? The books in his hands and pockets are all Allan Edgar Poe novels. That's gotta mean something."

"It's going to be interesting getting him down."

"I'm already on it," Lindsay said as she walked into the room, carrying a black case in each hand. "Turns out the adhesive is basically an industrial version of crazy glue. You need to be a manufacturer to get your hands on it. This is definitely not something you can pick up at any hardware store."

"OK, well that's a start," Danny said. "We find out where that glue came from and maybe we find out who stuck it to our victim."

"Not your best work, Messer," Flack laughed, referring to Danny's pun.

Lindsay also laughed. That was her Danny. He was good for at least one wisecrack per case. She could also count on him to brighten her day no matter what – whether it was a joke, or something small like a bringing her coffee or an unexpected gift in her locker. Last week he had left her a photo of them in Central Park. She was on his lap and he had stretched out his arm to take it. It came out crooked but she loved it anyway – she had a silly grin on her face and Danny was kissing her cheek. She had taped it to the inside of her locker – it made her smile every morning.

"These heaters will melt the glue so that we can get the body down," Lindsay said as she put down the cases she'd been holding. "It'll take a while to melt, but as much as we'd like to we can't just tear this guy off the wall – especially if we want keep things by the book." She wasn't sure when it had happened, but Danny's fondness for witty one-liners had rubbed off on her.

"Oh man, enough you two!" Flack exclaimed. "I'm going to go talk to the owner." He walked towards the front of the store shaking his head at the CSIs. He didn't know two people meant to be together more than Danny and Lindsay.

"There's some kind of trace on the vic's hands. I'll handle that. Do you want to take the books?" Lindsay asked.

"Sure," Danny replied as his cell phone rang. Danny frowned when he saw Louie's name on his caller ID. Things had been rocky between him and Louie lately. After recovering from the beat down he'd gotten from the Tanglewood Boys a year ago, Louie had promised that he would make a break from that lifestyle. Almost dying and costing Danny his job was the wake-up call Louie needed. Danny had supported him in every way he could - helped him find a legitimate job, loaned him some money, let him crash at his apartment while he found a new place to live. But Danny was afraid his brother was slipping back into that dangerous world. Louie had called him a couple of times late at night; sounding drunk, saying times were tough and asking for money. When they did get together Louie was jumpy and Danny feared he was doing drugs again. Louie had denied everything when Danny had confronted him and they had not left each other on good terms.

Danny knew how easily it was to get pulled into the danger that followed the Tanglewood Boys. When Louie promised to straighten his life out Danny had offered his help with the contingencies that Louie be serious and that it would only be offered once. If Louie messed up he would not get a second chance – he was out of Danny's life for good. Realizing that he might have to make good on that threat was difficult for Danny. Deciding he couldn't deal with his brother right now he put the phone back in his pocket.

Lindsay noticed Danny's disconcerted expression and wondered who had called. "Everything okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, it was just, uh, Hawkes. I'll catch up with him later." Danny hadn't shared his concerns about Louie with Lindsay. If Louie was in fact hanging around the Tanglewood Boys again, Danny wanted him and Lindsay to have no part of it. It didn't matter who you were – the Tanglewood Boys would do whatever they felt necessary to send their message. Danny would never forget the time he and Louie were playing basketball the summer after his freshman year in college. The Tanglewood Boys stormed the court, ferreting out a teenage boy who they proceeded to beat the pulp out of. They left the boy hanging by his shirt on the wire fence. Turns out he was just the neighbor of a Tanglewood Boy, Johnny, who owed the boss some money. Apparently the boss did not appreciate that Johnny had given his neighbor a few bucks to get a new basketball instead of handing over all of his money to him. There were two things Danny knew about the Tanglewood Boys – they were dangerous and the less you know and the farther away you are from them, the better. "I'll start on those books."

xxxx

Danny and Lindsay had wrapped up their case by late afternoon and Lindsay had been hopeful that she'd be able to leave on time. Mac, though, had asked for her help on a high-profile case and that's how she found herself walking through the lab at midnight. She passed by the office and saw Danny sitting at his desk.

She stood outside the doorway and observed him. He was so handsome and perfect. Looking at him did odd things to her. Beyond the normal arousal he elicited from her, it made her think about being with him forever and think about family. Forever. That's what she wanted her and Danny to be. And that could only mean one thing - she was in love with Danny Messer. She never let people in easily before. Witnessing the death of her friends had done that to her. It made her realize that people she cared about could be taken away in a heartbeat. Every relationship she'd been in had been casual. Each guy was not someone she could get serious about, really care about, so it was safe. It was easy to let go when that time came. But Danny had barreled his way into every part of her – her mind, body, heart. She remembered asking him out on an official date four months ago and feeling like she was handing her heart over to him. Whether or not he knew it and whether or not it was intentional, he had taken complete possession of it.

As much being able to say she loved someone for the first time made her happy it was also unsettling. The fact that they'd been together for just four months made her feelings scary and intense, as if somehow they weren't real. Love was not a word she used lightly, and she knew Danny was the same way. She knew that he was happy, that he cared for her, but she wondered if Danny loved her. The idea that he might made her giddy. The idea that he might not made her stomach drop. She would be devastated if he didn't. And how could she stay with him after that? She couldn't even imaging being without him. That's probably why she'd never said the words out loud to him – she'd rather stay in blissful ignorance than learn that he didn't feel the same way.

She watched Danny lean back in his chair and rub his hands over his face. Lindsay thought he'd seemed a little distracted all day, and figured it was about work. They had been pretty busy lately – New York City was offering a lot more death than normal. At times likes this they just needed distance from not only each other, but everybody. She knew when not to press him but she wanted to make sure he was okay.

"Hey," she said, walking into the office.

He looked up when Lindsay entered, surprised to see her there so late. "Hey. What are you still doing here?" he asked. He was exhausted but perked up at seeing Lindsay. She carried a contagious energy with her wherever she went. And she was so beautiful. He would never be too tired to appreciate that.

"Mac wanted his case, the lady in the Statue of Liberty, wrapped up quickly so he pulled me into some lab work. What about you? Tough day?"

Danny had been trying to finish up some loose ends on cases from the previous week, but he was having trouble concentrating. Something was going on with Louie and he was torn between helping him and staying away.

"Just busy, behind on a lot of things." He leaned forward to grab Lindsay's wrist before she sat down, pulling her onto his lap. Lindsay's eyes widened as she plopped down on his lap. Louie had him feeling a little depressed, but Danny had an idea on how to feel better.

"Danny, what are you doing?" Lindsay asked as he started to nuzzle her neck.

"Nothing." One hand was massaging her hip and the other roaming her body.

"Stop Danny. We're at work." She fruitlessly swatted at his hands.

"It's past midnight. There's barely anyone here." He slid his hand down her thigh and continued to caress her neck.

"So what are you proposing?" A sense of excitement was building in her stomach. It was always like this when Danny touched her, but being in a public place added a layer of exhilaration that had her interest piqued.

He pressed her into him so that she could feel his hard arousal. "Do I need to spell it out?"

Giving into her own arousal Lindsay pulled him into a kiss. The fact that someone could walk by or see them had her heart racing with fear and thrill at the same time. Danny felt his mind empty of Louie and work, as his senses filled with everything Lindsay. He needed her. Right now. Frustrated with the clothes between them Danny started to stand up to remove them.

"Wait," Lindsay said.

Danny disappointingly lowered himself back onto his chair. "Backing out, Montana? That's too bad."

"No, I am not backing out Messer. I just have a better idea." She licked her lips and Danny's eyes filled with surprise and passion. Lindsay had that look in her eyes again. He loved that look. He loved the woman giving him that look.

"What's that?"

With a quick glance to the door, Lindsay slid off his lap and knelt between his legs. She looked up at Danny. Over the past four months he had shown her pure joy, total pleasure and true love. She wanted him to know that but couldn't say the words. Maybe she could at least return the pleasure and somehow he'd see everything that came with it, everything else she was feeling.

"Damn, Lindsay," Danny muttered when she started to unbuckle his belt. He thought he might have been able to talk Lindsay into a quickie and would have been willing to move to the locker room. But she was full of surprises and her brazenness just added to his arousal as well as his love for her.

Lindsay touched the heavy bulge tentatively and lightly over his jeans. She slowly lowered his zipper and cradled him in her palm. Her hand was full of his hot, hard length and Lindsay forgot about her surroundings and her mind went blank except for giving Danny pleasure. She leaned forward to touch him with the tip of her tongue.

Danny sucked in his breath, his fingers tightening in her hair. "God Lindsay. That feels so good."

Lindsay leaned closer, tasting more of him, stroking him. Her teeth, tongue and lips staking their claim on him. Ripples of pleasure ran through Danny's body and every one of his muscles tensed as Lindsay quickened the pace of her ministrations. It didn't take long for Danny to feel his control slipping, his hips lifting off the chair. When Danny finally reached his release with a quiet groan Lindsay took him into her mouth even deeper until his grip on her hair loosened and he relaxed back into his chair.

Danny zipped his pants and pulled Lindsay up onto his lap, tucking her head under his chin, circling his arms around her. They sat like that in compatible silence. Not having to make small talk was nice, and one of his favorite things about being with Lindsay, Danny thought. He felt the urge to tell Lindsay how much he loved her but couldn't say the words just yet. He held her tighter, hoping instead that she could feel those words through his embrace.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** The title of this story is Tension, so it's not happily ever after for Danny and Lindsay – at least not yet.

Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing!!

And another huge thanks to **mel60** who beta'd this for me.

xxxxx

_If you start me up_

_If you start me up I'll never stop_

Danny's cell phone roused him from his sleep. Why did he think using that Rolling Stones' song as his ring tone was a good idea? It was the last thing he wanted to hear at – he squinted to make out the time on the clock on his nightstand – 3:00 in the morning.

_You make a grown man cry_

_Spread out the oil, the gasoline_

Who the heck was calling him at this time? It must be Mac. He fumbled around the table reaching for his phone.

_I walk smooth, ride in a mean, mean machine_

_Start it up_

I'm coming, I'm coming he thought, turning towards Lindsay who was still sound asleep next to him. She looked so pretty and peaceful. He envied her ability to sleep through anything. He flipped open his phone without even checking the caller ID.

"Hello" he drowsily answered.

"Danny, it's your brother."

Danny immediately regretted answering his phone. His brother's shady behavior had continued since Danny last confronted him about getting back with the Tanglewood Boys – bailing on family functions, not meeting Danny when they had plans, never having any money. He had no solid proof but Louie was always good at hiding things. Knowing this would not be a pleasant conversation he got off the bed and walked into his living room.

"Why are you calling me so late? What do you want?" he asked his brother tersely.

"Danny I need your help." Louie's voice was shaky and he sounded scared.

"What's the matter with you?"

"I need you to come pick me up. I'm in bad shape here." 

"Are you kidding me? It's three o'clock in the morning. What do you mean 'bad shape'?" Danny was angry, which was how he found himself more and more often during conversations with his brother. Danny just knew Louie was lying to him about the Tanglewood Boys and his brother still had the audacity to ask for his help.

"I got in a fight. It was stupid. I'm hurt pretty bad, though." Danny also recognized this as a lie. If his brother had gotten into a scuffle at a bar Danny would have just heard an exaggerated version of the story the next day. He knew this was more serious, but still wasn't eager to help.

"Take a cab home."

"I have no cash on me. Danny, please. I'm on the corner of 83rd and 5th. Just this one time. Please?" Danny heard desperation in his brother's voice that he couldn't ignore.

With a heavy sigh, he relented, "Fine. Stay where you are. Give me fifteen minutes." Walking back into his bedroom he quietly got dressed and left a note for Lindsay in the kitchen in case she woke up.

_L – _

_Louie had too much to drink. Went to go pick him up. Be back soon. _

_D_

Danny had a bad feeling about this whole situation, but he would help his brother this one last time and get to the bottom of things with him for good.

xxxxx

Danny found Louie leaning against a convenience store, his jeans torn and hooded jacket pulled low over his face. He was a sad sight. He hadn't been lying when he said he was in bad shape. He'd been beaten. Badly. Louie had bought a can of soda from the store and was holding it over his eye, which was swollen shut. His face and neck were covered in bruises, and both lips cut open. He couldn't stand upright because his left ribs were at least cracked, if not broken.

There was no point in asking Louie who had done this because Danny already knew. He wanted to scream at his brother. Hadn't he learned anything? Hadn't he wiped his slate clean and gotten a fresh start on life? Why was he giving all that up? He wanted to scream and yell and punch Louie, himself, but he felt too defeated to do any of it. He fooled himself into believing Louie could change. Danny had managed to stay away from Tanglewood, so why couldn't Louie? But they were two different creatures. Louie was too weak; he needed the sense of approval and importance he got from the Tanglewood Boys. All of that sunk into Danny as he looked at his broken brother.

"Was it worth it?" Danny asked.

"What are you talking about?"

"Whatever you're doing with the Tanglewood Boys. Was it worth getting beaten up? Was it worth throwing away everything you've done in the past year? Was it worth losing your brother?" Louie had given Danny no choice but to make good on his threat to cut him out of his life. He wasn't sure what Louie had done to deserve this punishment but Danny didn't even care. Whatever it was, it just meant that Louie was back with the Tanglewood Boys – a stab in the back as far as Danny was concerned.

"Danny, come on. It's not like that. I just..."

"I don't want to hear it." Danny interrupted what was sure to be a slew of excuses. It would just make him angrier. "You need to go to the hospital. I'll drop you off, but don't call me, don't come to my apartment, don't come to my work. Don't come anywhere near me. Ever again. You hear?"

Danny had said this calmly, almost quietly and Louie recognized his brother's tone for what it was – resolute anger – and it made him panic. Danny was the only person who'd always been there for him. Even when he had every right to turn his back Danny was there, and he was afraid of losing that.

"Don't do this Danny. Alright, okay. You're right. I made a couple of bets with Mikey that didn't go my way, and I got a little carried away but that's it. It's hard, you know. This nine-to-five thing. I was rolling around in money before with them, and it's been hard trying to make a straight living. I thought I could make a few extra bucks on a couple of games, but I got in a little over my head."

"Don't talk to me about making a living. When you called I was sleeping so that I could function normally at work, were I have to be in a few hours by the way, where I have to be every day. Normal, responsible adults do that. But I guess that's expecting too much from you. Come on, let's go." Danny pulled his brother off the wall by the arm and led him to his car.

"It was just a couple of bets, Danny. I swear. If I could just borrow some money, I'll get them off my back and then that'll be the end of it."

"Don't treat me like a fool, Louie. It takes a lot more than a couple of bets to get the boys to do something like this. What was it really? Drugs? That or you must have been playing with the kind of money that I would never be able to loan you anyway. And you expect me to believe that they just let you start hanging around, making bets out of the blue? You never broke from them. Sure, you moved, you got a job but you're just a wolf in sheep's clothing. You had me fooled, that's for sure. But that's it. Never again."

"You're not that different from me you know." Louie said defensively. He had tried hard to change, to be the person Danny and everyone else expected him to be, but he just couldn't do it. "Everyone has their weaknesses, their vices. We all want more – more money, more power. So I choose to go about it differently than you. But I get what I want."

"This is what you want?" Danny shouted at his brother, waving his arms at the empty city streets. "Beaten up and bleeding on the street, all alone, broke! If you're happy with that then you're more of a pathetic loser than I thought."

"You act like I'm the only one who has this life. I never saw you turn your back on dad. You can't tell me you don't know what he was doing every night when he told us he was playing cards. Do you know any other construction worker who could afford the things he did? You can run from it all you want, but our family is connected. You think you're safe up there on your pedestal with your badge, but you're not. Just because you don't run with the boys doesn't mean they don't keep tabs on you. They probably keep a closer eye on you _because_ you're a cop. You should treat your family better, you know that, Danny. I'm your brother, we're blood."

Danny snapped. "Fuck you, Louie. I have done nothing but help you your entire life. Instead of following Dad's footsteps, you should have learned, known better. I did. You almost died for God's sake. I almost lost my job because of you. You ungrateful son of a bitch." He pushed Louie towards the car, "Get in."

They drove to the hospital in silence. Danny never took his eyes off the road, refusing to acknowledge his brother. When they reached the hospital he came to an abrupt halt at the entrance, causing Louie to jerk forward.

"Get out," he finally said, still not looking at his brother.

"Danny, I…"

"Get out!" the sight of Louie was making him sick and he never wanted to see him again.

Louie opened the door and turned to look at his brother. He knew he had messed up and Danny had every right to be angry. He wanted to apologize but knew there was nothing he could say or do to make things right. He got out of the car and stood on the hospital walkway, watching his brother speed away until he was just a speck on the street. Maybe he'd call Danny tomorrow, after he had a chance to cool down. Maybe he hadn't meant what he said. He doubted it, but maybe.

xxxxx

Danny made it back to his apartment at 4:30 in the morning. There was no point in even trying to sleep. His shift started in an hour and a half and he was too riled up anyway. He was still furious at Louie and sad that he'd lost his brother. Not literally, but he'd been serious about not wanting to see his brother again. As long as Louie was a Tanglewood Boy, he was dangerous. Maybe he expected too much, but he just wanted his brother to lead a good life, a safe life. That would never happen as long as he was a Tanglewood Boy.

Danny walked into his bedroom and lay down next to Lindsay. She was working the afternoon shift and was still fast asleep. Part of him wanted to wake her up so that he could talk to her about what had just happened, but Louie's words haunted him. _You think you're safe, but you're not_. He had to keep Lindsay in the dark if he wanted to keep her safe.

xxxxx

Something was wrong. Very wrong, Lindsay thought to herself as she packed up her stuff in the locker room. Grateful for the end of her shift, she wanted to go home, take a bath and try to relax. She also wanted to see Danny because he was what was wrong. He had been distant the past few days. She had a feeling it had something to do with Louie because of the note she'd come across a couple of days ago, about going to pick him up. He had gone into work early that morning and didn't wait for her, like he usually did at the end of his shift and the beginning of hers. He hadn't returned any of her phone calls until later that night, apologetic, saying he was swamped at work. Just drunk, no big deal, was all he'd said when she asked him about Louie. It had to be more than that and Lindsay felt hurt that Danny wasn't opening up to her about it.

When they'd gotten together for dinner yesterday he'd been uncharacteristically quiet and went to bed early. She asked him if he was feeling okay, if everything was alright and he'd said yes. They were working the same shift today, but different cases and she hadn't seen him all day. He'd already called her asking to skip dinner because he had some things to do. Things? What kind of things she wanted to ask, but didn't push. He obviously needed his space, but Lindsay had to resist the urge to drive to his apartment, hurl herself into his arms and beg him to tell her what was wrong. Deciding she couldn't agonize over this much longer, Lindsay slammed her locker shut. She'd give Danny his space until tomorrow and then she'd force him to talk to her.

xxxxx

Danny had been standing in front of Lindsay's apartment building for two hours. The streets were empty except for the occasional pedestrian and car. He probably looked suspicious to anyone watching him considering it was two o'clock in the morning. His body was revolting against him, refusing to budge from where he was standing and do what he came to do.

The night after he'd picked up Louie, a man had come up to him as he was about to get in his car. The man stood near enough to his car so that Danny could hear him, but to any passerby it looked as if he was just waiting for the walk light to turn. Taking an occasional pull form a cigarette the man had said, '_Your brother owes us a lot of money. He better pay up. You hear of the mob code of silence? Well there's also a mob code of collection. We work our way down the family tree to get what's ours." _Then the man threw his cigarette to the ground and simply walked away.

Danny wasn't sure how long he stood there in stunned silence. His biggest fear was coming true – the dangerous reach of the Tanglewood Boys was touching him again and he felt panicked. He had no idea how much money his brother owed but he was certain Louie would never be able to come up with it. What would that mean for him? Would they come after him like they did Louie? And the rest of his family? And Lindsay?

He had shut her out, kept his distance. He needed to do that, just until everything sorted itself out with Louie and the situation was less volatile. That was until today when he realized it was too late. He'd come home to find an envelope under his door. Inside was an enlarged photo of Lindsay. She was walking out of a bakery she visited regularly, holding a cup of coffee. Someone had been watching her, following her. It was probably the same someone who had scribbled a note on the back of the photo. _It would be sad if you had to use your investigative skills on her crime scene. What's that called? Irony_.

His heart raced so fast at seeing the photo and reading the note Danny feared he was having a heart attack. His immediate reaction was to find her, make sure she was safe, protect her. But it only took another minute of thought before he realized there was only one way to do that. He had to keep her as far away from him possible. Even if the Tanglewood Boys got their money this time, what would happen the next time Louie messed up?

He spent the rest of the evening sitting on his couch, a million questions racing through his mind. How would he get these guys off him? Could he get the money together? Should he get the money together? He asked himself a hundred times what the best way to protect Lindsay was, and he kept coming to the same conclusion – keep her away from all of this. He was going to have to let her go and that idea ripped him to pieces. It would kill him to do it and he knew he would hurt her just as badly. But he would rather hurt her now, while he could control things and be without her, than to have the Tanglewood Boys do anything to her.

That's how he found himself outside her building, his body and mind heavy with dread and sadness. He'd thought about what he would say but changed his mind every time he played it out in his head. Whatever he said would be a lie so it didn't even matter. She would hate him, and he would lose the woman he loved. He would just have to make it quick. There was no way he could keep it together in front of her for very long. Resigning himself to what he had to do, Danny finally walked into the building.

xxxxx

The buzz of her doorbell startled Lindsay awake. She popped out of bed and tried to get her bearings. She hadn't been asleep long, her mind restless with worry over Danny. Seeing the time, she wondered who was at her door. Throwing on her robe she looked through the peephole. Danny? He was the last person she expected to find considering he seemed to be avoiding her.

"Danny, what's wrong?" The way he'd been acting the past few days combined with how tired and haggard he looked had Lindsay assuming something was wrong.

Danny walked into her apartment without saying anything. He turned to look at her but words were refusing to leave his mouth. This was the last time he could look at Lindsay as his lover. The last time she would look at him without hurt in her eyes. He wanted it to last just a little longer.

The uneasiness Lindsay had felt around Danny intensified the second he walked into her apartment. A heavy silence hung in the air. He had the most tortured look on his face and she could no longer resist the urge to wrap her arms around him to comfort him. She would wait until he was ready to talk, but offered her comfort the only way she knew how, in the meantime.

Danny was aware of Lindsay's warmth closing around him, but it washed right off him. This would be the last time he could hold her like this. Part of him wanted to squeeze her and part of him wanted to push her away – for this to not be their last memory of physical contact. But Lindsay continued to hold him as if she would never let go. Danny wasn't sure how long they stood like that but eventually he brought his hands up to cup her face. He looked down at her and saw the sweet, serious look in her eyes. Without even stopping to think about it he lowered his head and covered Lindsay's mouth with his own.

Her lips softened instantly under his, inviting him to take more. A sharp, urgent need surged through Danny. He had to have Lindsay. He would be cold and empty for the rest of his life and he needed her to wash his pain away for just one night.

He gripped her waist and dragged his mouth across hers desperately. Lindsay wrapped her arms more tightly around him, silently offering him whatever he wanted, whatever he needed. She was responding feverishly to him, clinging to him, kissing his neck.

Danny knew he had lost his self-control. The feelings surging through him were raw and uncontrollable. Danny pulled her robe off and slid his hands down her hips. He yanked off her underwear and lifted her against him. She whimpered softly and wrapped her legs around his waist.

Danny staggered slightly as he found his balance. Desperate to get rid of the rest of their clothes, he lowered them to the floor. Lindsay gasped as Danny ripped her tank top, but didn't pull away. She reached for the zipper of his jeans and stroked him once he was free from the barrier of his pants. She looked up at him through her lashes. The warmth and safeness Danny saw there was overwhelming. He did not take his eyes off her as he moved his hands along the inside of her thighs. He could feel how hot and ready she was and slid one finger into her. Lindsay shivered and moaned. Danny wanted to savor her reaction but there was no time, his body was hurtling towards release.

He could not take the time to get out of his pants. Sprawled on top of her, she widened her legs for him and he drove into her. He was unable to move slowly or exert any kind of finesse with an urgent need to fill her with him. And then he was lost, arching over her, gritting his teeth at the pain and pleasure coursing through him simultaneously. Danny shuddered heavily and collapsed on top of Lindsay. He gulped air, vaguely aware that she was running her fingers through his hair.

Eventually Lindsay stirred and pushed him off her. She stood up and held out her hand to him, leading him into her bedroom. Maybe tomorrow he would wake up and everything would be better. Maybe he would be able to fix things and Lindsay would still be his. Danny prayed for that as he drifted into sleep with Lindsay in his arms.

xxxxx

Lindsay woke up and immediately reached out for Danny. Her hand was met by sheets and blankets, but no Danny. Throwing on some clothes, she walked into the living room and saw Danny standing by the living room window.

Danny heard her walk into the room but didn't turn to her. Instead he stared past his own reflection into the city street, trying to come to terms with what he had to do next. Sleep had only confirmed that leaving Lindsay was still the best thing to do. His throat closed tightly around the lump stuck in it.

"Danny?" Lindsay asked. When he didn't immediately respond she walked up to him and touched his arm.

He flinched at her touch, and slowly turned to face her. He cleared his throat and blinked hard trying to prevent his gathering tears from flowing. He stared into Lindsay's expectant brown eyes. Unable to move, unable to speak he just mutely stared.

"Danny what's wrong?" Lindsay couldn't hide the despair in her voice. He never answered that question last night when she'd asked it, but Danny's face was contorted with anguish and she needed to know why.

Determined, Danny took a deep breath. "Lindsay, I think…we've been moving pretty fast here. Maybe we should slow down."

Lindsay opened her mouth, but closed it again because the violent kick to her heart had robbed her of breath. "What are you saying?"

"Let's just slow things down, take a breather, maybe see other people."

"You don't want to see me anymore?"

"I just think we need to take a break, we've been taking up a lot of each other's time and…" Danny let the rest of his sentence die. He could use every lame excuse in the book but none of them would make a difference.

"Oh." That's all Lindsay could get out. Her emotions rioted inside her – disbelief, sadness, anger. She felt the room closing in on her. She tried to breathe, but she seemed to suck in more of an ache than air. Twin tears rolled down her cheeks. She had wondered if Danny loved her as much as she loved him, and he obviously didn't. He must have felt nothing even close to love if he wanted to see other women. A quiet rage slowly crept into her. "You've obviously been thinking about this for awhile. What was last night about? A pity screw?"

Danny didn't know what to say. He'd broken up with plenty of women before but he'd always had a legitimate reason that made it easy. Breaking up with the woman he loved to protect her but not being able to explain that to her left him tormented. Nothing he could say would make this easier for either of them so he stayed silent.

"Get out." Lindsay said angrily. She couldn't stand to look at him. These past four months had been a waste. She was imagining the rest of her life with him but she was just another notch in his belt, it seemed.

Danny closed his eyes at her words. This was it – the moment they ceased being together. He was certain the knowledge that he was doing the right thing for her would cure the sick churning in his stomach and ache in his heart. Without a word or a look back Danny walked out of Lindsay's apartment.

Lindsay watched him leave, positive he was taking a part of her with him that she would never get back. She headed for her bedroom and curled up in her bed, pulling her knees to her chest. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She hadn't felt this vulnerable and alone since the loss of her friends ten years ago. She'd get over it. She'd survive. She was determined to believe that, even as sadness enveloped her.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N**: The Italian translation is courtesy of BabelFish – hopefully it's close to accurate.

A huge thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing and to **mel60** who beta'd this for me!

xxxxx

In the locker room, Lindsay stared at her reflection in the mirror. She looked like hell. With five hours of barely any sleep and plenty of crying since her heart had been broken last night she was surprised she didn't look worse. However, her headache, red puffy eyes and dark circles were a walk in the park compared to how she felt on the inside. She felt as if Danny had literally ripped her heart out of her chest, threw it on the floor, stomped on it and put it back in. Then added a couple of kicks to the gut for good measure. She hurt in every possible way.

Lindsay was overwhelmed by the massive mess confronting her – having to face Danny every day at work, acting like nothing was different, hiding her anger, her sadness - both were already eating away at her. She'd constantly replayed their break up in her head, willing it to only be a dream. A nightmare, actually. In her brief moments of sleep she had yearned for him, reached for him, her heart breaking again when she realized he would never be there next to her.

She wasn't sure what she was going to say to Danny the next time she saw him, and was nervous about their inevitable encounter - their first post break-up encounter. She'd never dated a coworker before and her contact with ex-boyfriends always ended with the relationship. This had been one of her biggest concerns about starting a relationship with Danny in the first place. What would happen if things went wrong? Would they be able to work together? Would they still be friends? Well, things had gone wrong, alright, and she was sure it would be nothing but tense and awkward.

Part of her wanted to run to Mac's office and beg him to not assign them to cases together. At least for a little while, say maybe the next five or ten years. But she knew that wouldn't float with her boss. He was all about keeping things professional and she'd never be able to justify a reason. Instead, her plan was to play it cool, keep their personal life out of their work. She refused to let Danny see how much he hurt her. She would put up a wall - she was good at that. With only shaky confidence in her own plan, Lindsay stood up to face reality. Before she reached the door, Danny pushed his way through into the locker room.

Lindsay froze in her tracks, unprepared for this encounter even though she had played it out in her mind a million times. She was pretty sure a human heart wasn't designed to beat as fast as hers currently was. That, combined with the nerves twisting her stomach in knots, rendered her speechless and paralyzed.

Danny also just stood and stared. Lindsay obviously had the same plan he did – coming into work early to avoid any unnecessary conversations. He was exhausted and numb from thinking about and analyzing and debating everything he'd said and done last night. He had never experienced heartache before and never realized how it could tear a person to pieces, how immobilizing it was. He felt totally empty now, as if he had left all his emotions and functioning on Lindsay's apartment floor. He couldn't laugh or cry or anything in between if his life depended on it. Guilt was the only unstable emotion running through him. He had not slept for even a minute and doubted he ever would again. He was sure it was fair punishment for the hurt he'd caused Lindsay. It may not have been a physical wound, but to a woman opening up her heart, sharing herself with him, she must have felt betrayed.

Danny knew that she would not make any kind of scene. No matter how upset she was at him, she would never let it affect their work. She looked sad and tired and it killed him to know he was the reason why. Lindsay didn't understand, but this was for her own self-preservation. He was doing this because he didn't want her to get hurt. Because he loved her. Knowing he couldn't say any of this, all his fatigued mind came out with was, "Hi."

Lindsay blinked at his word. They had stood there for so long she thought she might have imagined Danny there. But no, he was real, everything was real. The spiteful part of her wanted to walk right by him, ignore him, but she knew that was not an option if they were going to work together.

"Hi," she quietly replied, looking down at the floor. God, this was awful, Lindsay thought to herself. Strained conversations, forced congeniality – that's what she could look forward to in the foreseeable future. Well, she might as well take the hand she was dealt and run with it. "Mac just announced a staff meeting in ten minutes."

That was the first brick in her wall going up – acting like last night never happened. Not only last night but the past half year. In fact, Lindsay would rewind her emotions almost two years back. Right to when she'd first started in New York, when Danny still didn't trust her, before they were comfortable with each other, before the flirting and the teasing.

Lindsay remembered the movie she and Danny had watched once during one of their many movie marathons, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet had their memories of each other erased to get over their break up. She wished it wasn't just a movie, that such a thing was possible. All she had left of her time with Danny were memories and more than anything Lindsay wanted them out of her head.

"Yeah, I got the page," Danny said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. He was relieved that Lindsay was keeping things normal between them, as normal as things could be he guessed. But her response was also frighteningly calm. He knew how much she must hate him - it had to be overwhelming and nauseating if it was anywhere near how much he hated himself. He hated that he had trusted his brother, that he hadn't known better, that he couldn't think of any other way to keep Lindsay safe, that he couldn't fix things.

It was kind of scary how she could keep her emotions under wraps. She had internalized the turmoil of her friends' deaths for years so he shouldn't have been surprised. Part of him wanted to tell her that it was okay to let him have it – he wanted her to scream at him, punch him, curse him. But that was selfish. He only wanted her to do that because it would make him feel better. It was easier to deal with an angry Lindsay than an anguished Lindsay.

"Okay, see you." Lindsay walked around Danny and left the locker room, clenching each hand in a fist to stop them from shaking. She exhaled a deep breath, thankful that she had survived that conversation. It was barely a conversation, but words were exchanged so it counted. It could only get easier from here, she thought. Right? It had to. She wanted it to get easier. She needed it to get easier. She wasn't sure how she would survive if it didn't.

xxxxx

Stella, Sheldon, Lindsay and Danny were gathered in Mac's office listening to his update on the day's cases. Just forty-eight hours earlier Lindsay and Danny would have been standing next to each other, but now they were on opposite sides of the room, on opposite ends. Stella noticed this small deviation from their usual pattern, but kept it to herself. Neither of them looked very happy this morning. Maybe they had an argument - it was bound to happen sooner or later. She made a mental note to talk to Lindsay when she had a chance.

Lindsay leaned against the wall, quickly saying a hundred prayers that she and Danny would not be assigned to the same case. She would go to church every Sunday, volunteer every Saturday, call her mom every Friday, and say a million Hail Mary's every day if just this once God listened to her and kept her and Danny on different cases.

"Lindsay, Danny, I need you guys on the DOA on 73rd and 5th. Head out, Flack is already there waiting for you. Hawkes, you'll be with Stella and me on the Ellison double homicide," Mac instructed.

Lindsay's shoulders slumped. Her words had not made it to God's ears. Maybe this was a good thing. She already got through their first conversation and getting through their first case together would be the next hurdle. It had to happen at some point. She looked at Danny and saw him staring at her. Their eyes locked for a moment and Lindsay hated the awareness that still tingled through her body at his gaze. He was probably trying to gauge her reaction to working a case with him; afraid she wouldn't be able to handle it. She turned away, slightly lifting her chin in defiance, another layer in her wall going up.

xxxxx

Danny had been staring at the same fingerprint for the past fifteen minutes. It was the only substantial evidence in their case but it was getting them nowhere. Danny thought if he stared long enough something would come to him. He was grateful for the solace examining evidence brought him. Working with Lindsay today had been…tense, at best. She stayed to one end of the crime scene while he worked the other. They only talked when absolutely necessary. When he had offered to go with her to check alibis she had quickly responded 'no thanks' and practically ran out of the lab. He knew he shouldn't expect differently, but no amount of preparation could lessen the sting of losing Lindsay.

He wasn't sure how long he could go on like this – feeling hollow, unsteady whenever Lindsay walked into the room, knowing her cool, measured glances were motivated by a loathing that he'd created. Danny just wanted all this to be over. He wished he could just escape – travel somewhere, anywhere for awhile – and come back to a world where Lindsay didn't despise him. A new wave of desperation washed over him each time he realized that was all just wishful thinking.

He was sure Flack suspected something was up. He had asked Danny if everything was alright. Danny had said yes and Flack didn't press. He wasn't ready to let everyone know that he and Lindsay were no long together. It would just add to the list of people who thought he was an ass.

"Waiting for evidence to talk to you again, Dan?" Stella's question interrupted his thoughts.

"Yeah. It's not working, though." Putting down the magnifying glass and fingerprint, Danny let out a deep sigh of frustration – at the fingerprint and life.

Stella observed her coworker – he looked tired and something was definitely on his mind. She was pretty sure it had something to do with Lindsay, considering she was walking around with the same forlorn look on her face.

"Everything okay?" she asked, "You seem a little off today."

"Yeah, I'm fine." Danny wished people would stop asking him that.

"Danny, come on. You look like a sick puppy dog. What's up?"

Leave it to Stella to see right through him, Danny thought. He knew he wouldn't be able to lie to her. "Lindsay and I…things weren't working out…so…" He didn't think getting the words out would be so difficult, but they were.

Stella's eyebrows raised in surprise. At worst, she thought Danny and Lindsay had an argument. She would have never guessed they'd broken up. They seemed perfectly happy – as discrete as they tried to be, she had caught their brief touches in the lab. She'd laughed at them when she caught them walking out of an empty conference room with mussed hair and haphazardly buttoned shirts. She had actually been a little envious – they made her question why she couldn't find a stable, happy relationship. She put a hand on Danny's arm.

"Wow, I'm…shocked…and sorry." As much as she wanted to know what happened between them, she knew it was none of her business. But she'd be there if Danny wanted to talk. "I'm here if you need me, you know that."

"Thanks Stel." Danny appreciated her concern and not pushing for details. There was nothing anyone could say that would make him feel better. Time was all that Danny was counting on. Hopefully with time this pain would dull.

xxxxx

"All the alibis checked out except for Maria Valen's. I'm on my way now to talk to her." Lindsay had run into Mac in the hallway and he'd asked for an update on the case.

"Is Danny going with you?" Mac did not miss the way Lindsay flinched at hearing Danny's name. Was there trouble in paradise between his two CSIs, he wondered.

"No, I'm going with Flack." It had been a tough day and she was looking forward to the end of it. She was still getting used to seeing Danny and hearing his name, each instance a difficult reminder that he was still the person she fell in love with but that they were no longer together, that he didn't want to be with her. Physically exhausted and mentally worn down, Lindsay felt her emotions rise to the surface.

She turned her head away, and Mac realized she was holding back tears she didn't want him to see. Concerned about what had his usually chipper – and tough - investigator about to cry, Mac pulled Lindsay into his office. "Lindsay, what's wrong?"

"Nothing Mac. Really, I'm fine." Lindsay was beyond mortified and could not meet Mac's eyes. Crying at work was not part of her 'keep it cool' plan, especially in front of her boss. She feverishly wiped her sleeve across her eyes in attempt to keep the tears from falling.

"Lindsay, you are not fine. If something is wrong that is affecting your work I need to know about it."

"Mac, I'm sorry. It's just…Danny and I are…no longer together and it's been a difficult day. I promise that it hasn't affected my work." Lindsay felt a small weight lift off her shoulders with her admission. She knew she must look horrible because everyone, all day, had been asking her if she was okay. She had continually lied, answered with a yes. Acting like everything was fine when she was broken into little pieces on the inside was draining. For whatever reason, Mac's question pushed her over the edge. Maybe it was the way he had assumed she would be going with Danny - because she normally would have gone with him up until her world turned upside down last night. She hoped that Mac wouldn't be disappointed in her or think that she was being unprofessional.

Mac made it a point to stay out of his team's personal lives but that didn't mean he didn't care. He recognized the chemistry between Danny and Lindsay shortly after she had arrived in New York and had been happy when he heard that they were dating. He appreciated the discretion they showed at work, and Lindsay was obviously trying to maintain that discretion now that their relationship was ending. He could tell the wounds were new, her hurt fresh. This was a recent development and he sympathized with her. He knew how difficult it was to keep his and Peyton's personal life from weaving its way into their professional one and he could only imagine doing that with the complications of a break up.

"You don't have to apologize. I don't expect you to be a robot, it's okay to cry." He put a hand on her shoulder, giving her a small squeeze. "Use a personal day if you think you need some time."

"I'm fine. I promise it will be business as usual from now on." She smiled, trying to reassure him – and herself.

"Okay. I know I'm just your old, stiff boss, but if you ever need someone to talk to my door is always open."

"Thanks Mac." Lindsay was surprised at his offer. He had always been supportive but Lindsay realized she had painted Mac with a broad stroke that was too rigid. Mac had a caring side to him, he didn't always show it but it was there. He had experienced so much sorrow in his life – with the war and death of his wife – but you would never know it by his demeanor. The only giveaway was his eternally tired eyes. Thinking about Mac's life, how much heartache he had overcome, Lindsay walked away with a glimmer of hope that she could and would get over Danny someday.

xxxxx

It was only March but Lindsay's face was damp, her hair limp and sweat ran down her back as if she was sunbathing in Central Park on a hot summer day. She was nowhere near Central Park, but the furnace in the apartment she was processing had broken, turning the room into a sauna. She was trying to gather evidence quickly so that she could get out of there. She'd taken off her layers so all she was wearing were pants and tank top but the heat was still sweltering. She looked across the room and saw Danny mirroring her actions – dusting for prints, bagging fibers in his jeans and white tank top.

After two months, working with him had gotten easier – they had settled into a rhythm of functioning awkwardness. Lindsay was relieved that they could at least work together and was proud that she'd managed to keep her cool, even if it was only superficial. They only talked and saw one another at work. They no longer avoided each other but never sought each other out either. If everyone went out for drinks they would sit far apart from each other. It was after these moments, driving home or lying in bed thinking about Lindsay, that Danny felt weakest. He had to fight to not give into his need to drive to her apartment, beat down her door and explain everything to her.

Their rhythm only hiccupped when a reminder of what they used to have reared its ugly head – when they would be transported back to when they were together, when they shared the events of their days, their lives. Like when Lindsay saw Danny prowling the lab, knowing he was struggling with a case, resisting the urge to soothe him like she used to. When she passed their favorite restaurant, when she could smell his familiar, earthy scent in their office even when he wasn't there. It was in those moments when the pain started again, emerging whenever she remembered what he'd done to her. It wasn't as strong as it used to be but it still made her whole body clench as if trying to fend off the memories and sadness of having lost the man she shared them with.

Lindsay hissed in a breath as a large, heavy wooden vase perched on the floor that she was dusting for prints toppled over and landed on her hand. Danny saw Lindsay grabbing her hand and immediately crossed the room to her in concern.

"You okay?" he asked and knelt down beside her. He felt Lindsay tense beside him.  
"Let me see." He grabbed her hand and her immediate reaction was to resist. To say she could take care of herself. He removed her glove and turned her hand over in his. Seeing his hands on hers reminded her of the way they used to work over her body. Lindsay drew in a breath as her heart skipped a beat "Your hand is swollen."

"I'm fine."

Danny stared at Lindsay as he loosely gripped her hand. He detected a speeding pulse along her wrist, which matched his own. This is the closest he'd physically been to her in months. It had been difficult to read her the past several weeks but he could see in her eyes how much she was still hurting. Regret washed through him. Time had made his torment more bearable, but it was still there - from the moment he woke up, keeping him up at night, even invading his dreams. He was sure it was the same for Lindsay.

"I'm sorry, Lindsay." He'd never said those words to her and he wasn't sure why. She'd never asked for an explanation and he never offered one because it would not have been an honest one. Maybe now, though, as late as it was she would understand that he never meant to hurt her.

"It's not your fault...I just need some ice." As if it were a live wire she pulled her hand from his. The pain on his face, the rawness of his voice, surprised her. She sensed that he was apologizing for more than just her injured hand. She'd been so wrong about Danny, but looking into his familiar enticing eyes, her heart ached. He seemed sincere in his apology – whatever it was for – but it didn't matter. Not now. Whatever they had was lost. It had left with Danny the night he walked out of her apartment.


	14. Chapter 14

_In the name of God, the merciful Father, we commit the body of Louis Michael Messer to the peace of the grave. _

Peace of the grave. Was it possible to find peace inside a wooden box under six feet of dirt, Danny wondered as he listened to the priest's prayer. Leave it to his brother to find peace in death. Considering death was his living Danny knew denial was a major part of mourning. People refused to believe that their loved ones were actually gone, instead believing that somehow they would wake up and their mother, or sister, or grandfather would walk through the door like they normally did. But Danny had accepted his brother's death fairly quickly. Louie had been walking a fine line between living and getting himself killed for a long time. He chose a lifestyle that had him toeing that line on a daily basis, whether it was dealing drugs, gambling, or doing the Tanglewood Boys' dirty work. That knowledge had not prevented Danny from being devastated by his brother's death, however.

Despite their rocky history, Danny loved his brother. It had evolved to a tough-love recently, but his brother's death left a gaping hole in his life. He didn't have a brother anymore. Louie would never know what it was like to be a father. Danny's kids would never have an uncle. Louie would never be his best man, Danny would never be his. When Danny thought about all the moments both he and Louie would miss out on he got angry. Furious actually, that his brother would do this to himself and to his family. It made him want to punch holes in walls or run into the street cursing God.

He looked over at his mother who was standing next to him, quietly weeping as she had been since Danny told her Louie was dead. Danny wished he could make this easier for his parents. He also wished that he could take back his last moments with his brother, that he hadn't turned his back on Louie. Maybe then he would still be alive. At the time he felt it was the right decision, but knowing his brother's corpse was in that casket and seeing his family in mourning made him regret that choice.

Memories of his last conversation with Louie seared through his mind constantly. _Don't come anywhere near me. Ever again_. That's what he'd said to Louie and it was ironic that his brother chose that time to actually listen. Danny hadn't seen his brother again until he was lying on an autopsy table. Every time he thought about that night he felt sick, bile rising in his gut. _Get out_. Those were the last words Danny ever said to his brother – not just out of his car but his life. Danny's jaw clenched and he touched his stomach at the memory. He could feel him self growing tense and twisted like a spring. Louie's death was all his fault and he felt hopeless – there was nothing that could save him from the torrents of guilt and sadness running through him. Danny watched as the priest dropped hand-fulls of dirt onto the coffin.

_Lord God, our Father in heaven and Savior of the world, have mercy on us. At the moment of death, and on the last day, save us, merciful and gracious Lord God. _

Moment of death. Danny thought a lot about Louie's moment of death, wondered what his last breath had been like. Shot to the back of the head. That's what Flack had told him three days ago. Danny knew something was wrong when Flack and Mac had come up to him in the lab and asked to speak to him privately. Flack seemed nervous, and kept putting his hands in and out his pockets. Mac's usually serious expression was even more so.

"_I'm sorry to tell you this Danny, but your brother was found dead this morning. A couple of teenagers found the body in an abandoned warehouse and called 911. He died from a gunshot to the head. We are still investigating but it definitely looks like it has something to do with his Tanglewood connection_."

It was surreal to have Flack talk to him in the same way Danny heard him talk to countless other family members on a daily basis. He remembered having difficulty breathing and not being able to hear anything else Mac or Flack said to him over his heart pounding in his ears. He tried hard to focus on what Mac was saying, something about taking time off but it was just like in the movies – when everything warped into slow motion and his voice sounded like a distorted tape recording.

Tears didn't come until later that night when he was laying on his parent's living room couch. He hadn't cried when he identified his brother's body. Maybe it was because he saw dead bodies every day and was used to the smell and unnatural shades of white and blue now coloring his brother's face. Even when he told his parents, he had remained stoic. He wasn't fighting tears, they just weren't there – as if all the circuits that controlled his emotions short circuited, his mind willing his grief into submission so he could be strong for his family. But lying on that couch in his childhood home - surrounded by the memories of his and Louie's childhood, remembering the time when they were both innocent and their futures filled with fantasies of being major league ball players - finally broke his composure. He cried for a long time that night.

_God, our Father, we entrust Louis Messer into your hands_.

Louie was now in God's hands, and that gave Danny some comfort. Louie always did whatever he wanted, no matter how reckless. But now he was safe from everything Danny had tried so hard to protect him from. Danny knew that the Tanglewood Boys killed Louie. He was just as certain that there would never be evidence to prove it. For all the experience Mac and Stella – who were working the case – had in finding and analyzing evidence, the Tanglewood Boys had even more in destroying it. The gun they used would have been unregistered, with no prints, thrown into the Hudson River. Everyone would be each other's alibi if it even got to that point.

Surprisingly, Danny was not hell bent with vengeance for his brother's death. Selfishly, he was grateful for what his brother's death meant. The Tanglewood Boys were washing their hands of Louie Messer. Louie paid whatever debt he owed with his life and Danny knew he and his family were safe from the Tanglewood Boys. Danny would not receive any more threats; he wouldn't find any more surveillance photos of Lindsay under his door.

Danny looked over his shoulder to Lindsay standing in the crowd of people surrounding his brother's grave. He'd been surprised to see her at the church considering they hadn't had a non-work related conversation in months, but seeing her also brought him a small amount of hope that maybe she wasn't there out of a sense of obligation but because a part of her still cared about him in some way. He had to fight the urge to run up to her, shake her by her shoulders and yell, 'See! This is what I was protecting you from. If we had stayed together it could easily be you in that casket. Do you understand now?'

Danny was too overwhelmed to even deal with that conversation. He wasn't sure he even wanted to have it. He had made a choice and had to live with its consequences. Even if Lindsay understood why he ended things between them, he couldn't expect her to take him back or want him back. If she did, it would probably be out of guilt or pity anyway. But he couldn't think about that right now. In six months he had lost the two people he cared most about and he felt broken. It wasn't too long ago when everything was so clear. He was with Lindsay, Louie wasn't in trouble. Life was so easy, so perfect. But nothing made sense anymore and he felt his life spiraling out of control. He needed to put himself back together before he did anything else.

xxxx

It was only four in the afternoon but Lindsay sat in total darkness in her bedroom. She had pulled the shades and curtains to block all the light and lay on her bed. She was trying to think. To make sense of life. Louie Messer was dead. He had been killed by the Tanglewood Boys. Danny had broken up with her to keep her from that same fate. It had been a week since that realization hit her and she was lucky it even had. She could thank two elderly women, who she didn't even know, for making her understand. She had been standing next to them during Louie's funeral. They had that old, but wise look about them – each wrinkle on their face a story or lessen learned. Lindsay hadn't paid much attention to them until they started taking to each other in Italian. One phrase in particular stood out to her and had been playing in a constant loop in her mind ever since. They had used Danny's name, which is why she started eavesdropping.

"_Ora è migliore. Stavano minacciando Danny ed avrebbero danneggiato il suo cane se potesse ottenerlo che cosa hanno desiderato. Resto anima del Louie di resto del dio._"

Danny had started teaching her Italian shortly after they began dating and she had picked it up quickly. Whenever she was around his family and friends they would speak to her in Italian and sometimes wouldn't respond to her unless she addressed them correctly in Italian. She wasn't totally fluent but could hold her own in a conversation. These women's accents were thick and their dialect made it difficult for her to completely understand what they had said. But she had picked up most of it. _It's better now. They were threatening Danny and would have hurt his dog if it could get them what they wanted. God rest Louie's soul_.

Hearing those words made Lindsay flash back to the day Danny left that note about going to pick up Louie. In her post-break up misery she had replayed their relationship in her mind over and over, trying to find the moment when things changed and she always stopped on that day. Danny had pulled back from her then and three days later ended their relationship. How could she have been so stupid? She had suspected something was going on with Louie, she knew about Louie's troubled past and knew Danny was upset. How could she not have put two and two together? Louie had obviously gotten into serious trouble with the Tanglewood Boys and pulled Danny into it somehow. Danny rarely talked about the Tanglewood Boys, but when he did all he ever said was how dangerous they were.

It all made sense to her now. If the Tanglewood Boys would hurt Danny's non-existent dog to get to Louie they would certainly have no problem hurting his very real girlfriend. When Danny felt threatened his protective instincts came out in full force. Once, when they had been out at a bar a man who had obviously had too much to drink started to harass Lindsay. He was more annoying than anything else, but she had to practically throw herself in front of Danny to stop him from getting into a fight. But this was more serious than a silly bar fight. This was about life and death. Whatever happened that night Danny went to pick up Louie must have made Danny think that Lindsay's life was in danger and to protect her he had pushed her away.

Her anger and sadness had instantly washed away and she wanted to run up to Danny to let him know that she understood, that it was all okay. But she didn't. That would be selfish. Danny needed to mourn and she didn't need to add to his stress. She would be patient as Danny had been with her when she was dealing with testifying in her friends' trial. They had time to make things right between them.

Danny would be returning to work tomorrow and Lindsay was trying to figure out what she would say to him. What could she say? 'Danny, I know you were trying to protect me so I forgive you for crushing me and breaking my heart into a million pieces.' Maybe she should wait for Danny to say something to her. But what if he never did? What if he didn't want to be with her anymore? Her stomach dropped at that thought. Lindsay turned onto her stomach and burrowed her head into her pillow. An old saying her mother used all the time popped into Lindsay's head - every difficulty has a gift for you in its hands.

She and Danny seemed to come up against difficulty after difficulty – getting off on the wrong foot when they first met, all her drama with her friends' murders, not being sure how each other felt after she returned from Montana. Lindsay would have thought that being with Danny was her gift at that point, but knew they had to get through their break up and this situation with Louie and the Tanglewood Boys for a reason. There was something more to look forward to, something even better. She hoped Danny realized that, but if he didn't Lindsay would make sure he did.

Lindsay jumped off her bed with determination, suddenly clear in what she had to do. Before leaving for Montana she struggled with how to say good-bye to Danny, how to let him know that it wasn't easy to go. She had left him a card because it was easier for her to express herself - there were no strained conversations or tense moments. Grabbing a pen and paper from her kitchen, Lindsay knew that's what she needed now. She sat down at her kitchen table and began to write everything she wanted to say, everything she needed to say to let Danny know she still loved him, still wanted to be with him. She just hoped that he felt the same way.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** Sorry for the terribly long delay in posting this – I am normally much faster with updates. I have an epilogue of sorts in mind for this story that I might write later on, but for now, here is the conclusion of 'Tension' – hopefully it's worth the wait.

I always say this and it doesn't do justice to how truly appreciative I am, but thank you to everyone who reads and reviews.

Finally, this story would be a huge steaming mess if not for **mel60** who beta'd this for me.

* * *

Sitting at her desk Lindsay stared at the card she'd just placed on Danny's desk. After deciding to write him a note the words flowed quickly and easily onto paper. Writing felt cathartic - as if each word cleansed her heart of all the anger and resentment she'd been harboring for Danny the past few months.

She had picked a blank card from a landscape series she brought with her from a Hallmark back in Montana. It had a bright blue clouded sky and wheat field. She thought Danny would appreciate it – it was probably the closest thing to a wheat field that he'd ever seen.

She nervously tapped her fingers on the desk, wondering if maybe this card idea was not such a good one. The white envelope seemed to be glaring at her, as if in neon lights, making sure she couldn't forget it was there. If she stared at it long enough she could swear she saw the shadows of the paper smirking at her. Yesterday, she'd been sure that this made sense, but the smirking envelope had her second-guessing herself. Would Danny think she was a coward for not talking to him in person? Would what she wrote mend the broken fences between them like she hoped? Could she have misunderstood those two women at Louie's funeral? It was possible that Danny ended things with her out of pure disinterest and her note would leave Danny perplexed and Lindsay devastated and embarrassed. Not wanting to think about that possibility any longer Lindsay left her office before she ripped the card to pieces or fell to pieces herself.

* * *

Danny's first day back since Louie's death was going as expected. People trying to hide their sympathetic looks, while he was trying to get back into the swing of things. He had mourned his brother but images of Louie would still flash in his mind at the most unexpected times bringing torrents of guilt with them. He hoped that would eventually go away, but until then he forced himself to get through each day without succumbing to the heartache that made him want to barricade himself into his apartment and never leave.

Stepping into his office Danny knew that Lindsay had just left. Her vanilla scent was still fresh in the air. The now familiar ache of missing her filled him. Plopping down on his chair he noticed a white envelope leaning against his computer screen. His heart lurched when he recognized Lindsay's handwriting - her girly script with curly hanging letters. He flashed back to the last time he'd gotten a card from her. He memorized what she'd written from reading it on a daily basis while she'd been away in Montana. At that time, he had been worried about her and her unexpected card let him know that she would be okay.

Now, his mind raced with what was in this also surprising envelope – an obligatory sympathy card? Seeing her at Louie's funeral had given him the smallest glimmer of hope that she didn't totally hate him, so maybe this was some sort of olive branch. Or maybe there wasn't even a card inside but a membership ID or some other silly remnant from their time together still at her apartment. A week after they'd broken up he'd found two bags of his belongings next to his desk with a note from Lindsay that said '_Thought I'd save you the trip_.' Maybe she was trying to save him some gas money again.

Danny was nervous. Whatever was inside that envelope – big or small, good or bad – would set the tone for things between them going forward. They could get back on a path towards friendship or they would remain miserably apart.

Getting over his nerves, Danny snatched up the card, his fingers shaking as he ripped open the envelope. He couldn't help but smile at the cover – a joke between him and Lindsay. This had to be a good sign, he thought. He had still been unable to convince her that a city skyline beat a wheat field while they had been dating. Lindsay considered herself the expert since she'd personally seen both. He opened the card and tried to read it all at once, overly curious at what was inside. Telling himself to relax he took a deep breath and started reading from the beginning.

_Dear Danny,_

_I never got the chance to tell you how sorry I am about Louie. I know how much he meant to you. I wanted so badly to talk to you at his funeral but wanted to give you your space and I wasn't even sure what to say. But I have to let you know a couple of things._

_I know you've been carrying the burden of your family's past for a long time. I don't know exactly what happened with Louie but I bet you blame yourself for everything. I felt the same way after my friends were killed. It took me years to realize that I wasn't responsible for their deaths. Because of that guilt I pushed people away – including you. I know now that you did the same thing to me._

_I understand why you did it – you were trying to protect me, to do what you thought was best for me. (Remind me to tell you how all those Italian lessons came in handy). I wish you had talked to me about all of this. I wish you hadn't made that decision for me. I would have stayed by your side, we would have gotten through this together._

_It's been so difficult and sad being apart and I don't want that anymore. I want you back in my life. We don't have to jump into anything, but I hope we can get back to just being us again._

_Love,_

_Lindsay_

Danny was mesmerized by Lindsay's words, letting the impact of them sink in as he read them.

She was sympathetic about Louie – that was normal. People he didn't even know had come up to him at the funeral to hug him and give their condolences. Lindsay knew him well enough, and from her own experiences, to know how guilty he felt about Louie's death. That was also normal, a lot of people knew that about him. He'd had a couple of long talks with Mac about guilt when Louie was in the hospital over a year ago and again after he'd died.

Her third paragraph was the one that he couldn't quite wrap his mind around. She knew why he'd left her and was okay with it. That was the last thing he expected to read. Danny was so confused that he read the paragraph over and over, making sure that he hadn't imagined anything. Yup, there it was - _I understand why you did it. You were trying to protect me, to do what you thought was best for me. _How had she figured it out and what did his Italian lessons have to do with it? Thoroughly bewildered, Danny read on in hopes of finding clarity.

Her next line was a kick to his gut. _I wish you hadn't made that decision for me. _He had agonized over his choice of pushing her away and she was letting him know that it wasn't the right one. Wasn't Louie's death all the evidence he needed that it was? Despite her proclamation that she understood, Lindsay didn't truly grasp how easily it could have been her in Louie's place. But maybe Lindsay was right, maybe he had over reacted. Keeping her safe had come with a severe cost – hurting and losing Lindsay – and maybe it wasn't worth it, maybe telling her would have been better. It certainly would have been easier. Maybe, maybe, maybe. Lindsay's note wasn't bringing any resolution to his constant inner debate and he would probably never know if he had done the right thing.

He realized that didn't really matter when he read her final sentence. _I hope we can get back to just being us again_. A tidal wave of relief swept over him as he read these words, washing away all the turmoil and anguish he'd been holding in for the past couple of months. But it was met with a current of guilt. After Louie's death he had felt so lost – first losing Lindsay, then Louie – and he struggled to live a life with neither of them in it. He'd been engulfed in so much misery that he never imagined Lindsay even remotely wanting to be with him again. It shouldn't be this easy to earn her forgiveness, to be absolved of all the hurt he knew he put her through. Shouldn't she get the chance to yell at him, curse him, maybe hit him a couple of times? Instead he got these beautiful words letting him know that everything was going to be okay and that didn't seem fair.

Danny wasn't sure what to do as he sat in his chair and stared at the note. He had no idea how to respond, the onslaught of emotions momentarily paralyzing him. He wanted to find Lindsay and, even though she said she understood, explain everything to her.

The buzz of his pager interrupted his thoughts. Mac needed him at a crime scene in Forest Hills, three DOAs. Not knowing how long until he'd be back, Danny decided to use Lindsay's chosen form of communication. Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Danny wrote a note to Lindsay.

After finishing, he reread it, happy with the finished product. Jotting her name on the front Danny tucked it under her keyboard where she'd be sure to find it and left his office with a smile, an expression that hadn't been on his face in a long time.

* * *

Three hours after leaving Danny her card in their office, Lindsay was nervously returning to the scene of the crime. That's how she had been thinking of it – a crime – because she was pretty sure her card was one of the more senseless things she'd ever done. She thought she would have heard from him by now – maybe a phone call, or come find her in the lab – something, anything to acknowledge her card. His absence was obviously a conspicuous sign that she had foolishly misjudged the situation. 

Lindsay knew Danny was working today, which meant he would have stopped by their office in the morning like he always did and he must have read her card by now. In her mind, she had imagined him reading it, becoming overwhelmed with happiness, running through the building to find her and kissing her senseless.

He must think she was so immature – who leaves a card when they have something important to say? Or maybe he hadn't responded because he didn't care anymore. He could be dating someone else for all she knew. After all this time apart he might have realized he was happy without her, and that made her sick to her stomach. She could easily get over their first 'break-up' because she understood his motivation. But if Danny didn't want to at least try to start over with her now she would have to relive that awful night in her apartment when he'd told her they should see other people - except it would be a hundred times worse. This time it would be for real and that would absolutely crush her.

If he was in their office now she would drop dead from embarrassment. It was easy to express her feelings with the thinking time and boldness that a pen and paper offered. What if, when she came face to face with Danny, things were awkward and nothing she said came out right. She slowed as she approached the office door and peeked around the corner. Good, no Danny. She felt childish for avoiding him but she wanted to come up with an explanation that didn't leave her looking ridiculous before seeing him.

Her heart sunk when she didn't see her card on his desk, effectively eliminating any hope that his lack of response was due to the fact that he just hadn't read it yet. She quickly moved to the cabinets that lined the left side of their office looking for an archived file. Finding the file in question Lindsay turned to leave and out of habit glanced at her phone to see if her voice mail light was blinking. Her eye was distracted by a piece of yellow note pad paper sticking out from under her keyboard. She commonly left reminder notes to herself on her computer, but she hadn't left one there.

Confused, she pulled out the paper and her breath hitched in her throat as she recognized Danny's scrawl. Of all the possible scenarios she'd played out in her mind she hadn't expected him to write her a note in return. Fearful, but anxious to see of this was the doomsday scenario she was imagining she unfolded the paper and began reading.

_Lindsay,_

_Thanks for the card._

_I regret a lot about the past few months. I turned my back on Louie and now he's dead. I wish I could take that back. I wish I could take back how much I hurt you - I never wanted that. But I didn't know what else to do and if anything ever happened to you I'm not sure how I would survive._

_Do you remember when you stalked me and hijacked my car? We toasted to fresh starts that night. I'm proposing another fresh start. Getting back to being us sounds good to me._

_Danny_

Lindsay wished she could hear Danny's voice say those words. She clutched the paper to her chest, her heart racing, as the realization that everything would be okay between them sunk in. He was suggesting a fresh start and that's all she needed to hear. She immediately turned to find Danny but bumped into Stella.

"Whoa, where's the fire?" Stella asked, wondering what had Lindsay leaving the office at full throttle.

"Sorry," Lindsay replied.

"Sid needs us in autopsy asap. He's ready earlier than expected."

"Oh, okay." Lindsay did her best to hide her disappointment. "Give me a minute. I'll be right there."

Stella left and Lindsay returned to her desk. More than anything she wanted to talk to Danny but until then she would take the first step at that fresh start. Rereading what Danny had written one more time Lindsay tucked the paper into her desk drawer and jotted him a quick note on a post-it. Sticking it to the top of his computer she went to meet Stella in autopsy.

* * *

Multiple crime scenes are the worst, Danny thought. Normally he was up for the challenge but he was in no mood today. His first day back in over a week and he had one of the more complicated homicides he'd seen in awhile – three bodies murdered in the same way, killed in different locations but found bound together. Danny was struggling to find out the how and why. 

On top of that he was frustrated that he hadn't seen Lindsay yet. He had been at the crime scene all morning and was now headed out to a secondary scene with Flack. Making a brief pit stop in his office on the off chance that Lindsay would be there he was disappointed to find it empty.

Looking at her computer he was happy to see his note had been removed. Danny noticed a post-it note crookedly stuck to his computer screen, disrupting his normally neat workspace. He wasn't one for post-its and no one in the office ever left messages in that way – that's why they had hundred dollar cell phones that were required to be on at all times. Leaning over the desk to grab it he once again recognized the handwriting.

_Some people call it stalking, others call it determination, Messer. Tomatoes, to-mah-toes. Messer. Got your attention, didn't it?_

Danny laughed at her note. This was the way things used to be between them – fun and relaxed, more concerned about teasing each other than anything else. He sensed that they were truly leaving the past couple of months behind them. He still felt like they needed to have a talk – a long one at that – but Lindsay wanted to be with him so why was he fighting it by feeling guilty? He wanted to see Lindsay more than anything, but knowing he was running late to meet Flack, Danny pulled a post-it from the stack on the desk and scribbled his own note, leaving it on her phone.

* * *

"Earth to Lindsay," Stella said as she waved her hand in front of Lindsay's face. "You with me?"

"Yeah, yeah, sorry." All day, Lindsay's thoughts had been wandering to Danny…and his note. It was torture having all those words between them but not a conversation – as if it wasn't real until they actually talked. She kept thinking about what it would be like when she saw him – she knew she would have to resist the urge to run up and hug him.

"Let's get to the layout lab and work on those clothes," Stella said.

"Sure. I'm going to drop my kit off and I'll be right there." She and Stella had been running around all day it seemed. First a crime scene, then to a suspects home and now to layout. A typical day, actually, but too hectic when all she wanted was five minutes to find the ever allusive Danny. Walking into her office she immediately saw the post-it note on her phone, her heart skipping a beat, knowing it was from Danny.

_You don't need to hide out in my car to get my attention. A nice plate of penne vodka will do the trick. I'm a simple man, Montana. Keep me fed, keep me happy._

How is it possible that a simple post-it could please her so much, Lindsay wondered. It was enough to make her insides melt. She could almost hear him say Montana with his thick accent. It had been so long since she'd heard him use that nickname that she didn't realize how much she had missed it until that moment.

She was tempted to call him to hear his voice, reaching for her cell phone to do just that. Realizing that even if he did pick up it would be a rushed conversation – Stella was already waiting for her in the lab – she instead punched in a text message, smiling as she made her way to meet Stella.

* * *

Danny was having a hard time thinking about anything other than Lindsay – when would he would finally get to see her, what it would be like when he did, what he would say. His phone buzzed and Danny was tempted to throw it out the window of the building he and Flack were in. It had been ringing non-stop all day. Looking at the caller ID he was surprised to see he had a text message from Lindsay. He smirked, understanding immediately setting in as he read her question. 

_That's all it takes?_

No, he thought, it takes a lot more than a bowl of pasta to make him happy. A good meal was a good start, so was a Yankee game, a night out with friends. A family get together, his job, his home – they were all nice but his definition of happiness had changed the day he was introduced to the new girl two years ago at the Bronx Zoo. Lindsay knew that better than anybody. He typed in a reply.

* * *

Lindsay's concentration on the suspect's clothes was interrupted by her cell phone ringing. Danny, she immediately thought as she flipped open her phone. 

_Not exactly. There's one more thing_

Lindsay felt stupidly excited about a simple text message, but before she could even respond he had sent her another one.

_Country girls_

Lindsay felt a rush of heat course over her cheeks. She squirmed at the sizzle of awareness that shot through her nerve endings. Danny was being…flirty and Lindsay had to fight a giggle. It had been such a long time since they bantered like this that Lindsay was almost not sure how to answer. But that doubt only lasted for a second before she sent him another message.

_Plural?_

Danny had kept his phone in his hand, hoping that Lindsay would respond right away, and she had. He laughed as he punched in his reply.

_Just one. From Montana. Brown hair, brown eyes. Maybe you know her._

Lindsay knew she had a goofy grin on her face but didn't care. Realizing she and Danny's text messaging could turn into an all day marathon all she replied with was a smiley face. The next time another word went between them it would be in person.

* * *

Lindsay plopped down on her office chair in total frustration and repulsion. Frustrated because it was now 6:00 p.m. and she still hadn't seen Danny. There were obviously invisible forces at work keeping them apart today. The repulsion came from the awful smell permeating the air, but she knew the source of that. She had just heard from Stella that Danny had spent the afternoon searching through dumpsters for evidence and knew from experience that the smell would follow him around for a long time. 

As much as she hated dumpster diving, it was actually not as bad as all the horse manure shoveling she did back in Montana. It was funny how Danny thought so many things about her were foreign when she first started at the lab because she was a country girl but now he was sending her text messages that only country girls could make him happy. Even though she had vowed to talk to him in person she couldn't resist sending him an email.

_**To:**__ Danny Messer  
__**From:**__ Lindsay Monroe __  
__**Subject**: Scents and Sensibility_

_Hey,_

_First day back and I heard you had to dumpster dive. Actually, I smelled you too – our office reeks. Please shower immediately after exiting any dumpster and prior to polluting any communal areas – particularly our office._

_Seriously though, I hope your first day back has gone well. I hope you're doing okay._

_By the way, you know what they say about country girls don't you? They do it best._

_Lindsay_

* * *

Danny swiveled his chair away from his desk and looked out the office window, smirking at Lindsay's email. He had finally finished processing all the primary and secondary and even tertiary crime scenes from the morning DOAs and was hoping to meet up with Lindsay. Meet up with Lindsay. That sounded so comfortable and friendly – everything they had not been with each other for a long time. It was strange how so much could change in just one day, but Danny was grateful for it. Swinging his chair back to face his computer, his fingers pausing at his keyboard only for a moment, he typed a reply to Lindsay. 

_**To:**__ Danny Messer  
**From:**__ Lindsay Monroe  
__**Subject**: Re: Scents and Sensibility_

_Ha ha. I showered five times and I still smell like crap. You know, even though you've been here two years you're still the newest person at the lab. I'll have to remind Mac about that the next time such a situation arises._

_Hawkes said you got called to a double homicide at the end of your shift - bummer. Wish I could have seen you today – been pretty crazy around here. I think Sullivan's is calling our name. You want to meet there when you're done?_

_And what, exactly, do you mean by 'it'?_

_Danny_

* * *

They seemed to have better luck communicating non-verbally today, Lindsay thought, as Danny's email popped up on her blackberry's inbox. She would pay good money to meet up with Danny at Sullivan's – or anywhere for that matter – but surrounded by two bodies, a whole lot of blood and hundreds of wood chips that needed to be collected she knew she was not going anywhere any time soon. She reluctantly typed a reply to Danny. 

_Going to be a long night. Rain check?_

Danny, still at his desk, frowned in disappointment at her reply. Such was the nature of their job. He needed to see her, to make sure this day wasn't some crazy dream. Maybe he could go to her crime scene. No, that would be unprofessional, plus if they were going to discuss their future it shouldn't be done in the presence of corpses. He could wait for her here until she got back, but it sounded like that could be hours from now. Maybe he would just call her later tonight. It had been a crazy day for both of them, and it would probably be better if they talked after they'd had some rest. Giving up on actually being able to see Lindsay today he typed in one last text to her before heading home.

_Sure. Maybe tomorrow._

* * *

Lindsay could barely make it up the last flight of stairs to her apartment, exhaustion making her legs feel like dead weights. It was close to midnight and she was just getting home from the crime scene. She was starving but too tired to care. All she wanted to do was flop on her bed and sleep for the next month. She was even too tired to think about Danny, resigned to the fact that she wouldn't see him until tomorrow. 

Energy surged through her body, however, when she saw Danny sitting in the hallway in front of her apartment door, her heart slamming against her ribs. She stopped in her tracks, her mind unable to direct her body to do anything except take in the unexpected sight of him. Finally, she walked up to him.

"Hi," she said.

Standing up, Danny smiled at her. He had planted himself at Lindsay's apartment door for the past four hours since getting out of work, deciding that he couldn't wait until tomorrow to see her. It had been worth the wait. She was smiling at him – she hadn't done that in forever. "If your day was anything like mine you probably haven't eaten since breakfast. I thought you could use some Chinese to refuel."

"Come in." she took her keys out of her bag and slipped them into the lock.

Dropping her coat and bag by the door she turned to Danny. She wasn't sure why the cat suddenly caught her tongue but all the words running through her mind turned into mush. Part of this was exhaustion but so much had changed between them from just their little notes that Lindsay had to adjust to talking to him in person as Danny and not the guy who broke her heart.

"Let me help you with that," Lindsay said, holding a hand out to the bags Danny was holding.

"I got it," Danny said, making his way into her kitchen and around it as if he'd done it everyday. He had to stop himself from planting himself in the middle of her apartment, where he thought he'd never be again, to take everything in. The couch where they lounged together watching movies. The hallway which led to her bedroom where they spent many memorable nights. The bookshelves which once housed framed photos of them at Central Park, a Giants game, in the lab. And the kitchen, where he was now, where they shared so many meals and conversations – and even one frisky night on the table. The fact that Lindsay had welcomed him back into her home warmed him from the inside out.

Danny was glad to have the food to concentrate on. He had waited all day to talk to her but now that she was in front of him he didn't even know where to begin – how sorry he was, how he wanted to move forward. Deciding an apology was probably the best place to start he stopped fidgeting with the food, braced his hands on the counter and looked down at the floor for focus. "Lindsay, I'm so sorry for everything."

Caught off guard by the force of her feelings about how domestic he looked in her kitchen and how genuine his apology was, she went up to him. He sensed her approach and felt her hand on his shoulder. Then her arms slid around his waist, her head resting on his back. Her embrace felt so right he never wanted them to move. Every inch of him electrified.

"It's okay Danny. I don't need an apology and you don't need my forgiveness," Lindsay said.

Slowly he pivoted around. Her face was shining with so many things: love, desire, contentment. He watched her for as long as he could, until he could no longer resist the urge to touch her. He brought his hands to brush the hair off her face, tracing the contours and softness he'd never forgotten.

It had been so long since Danny had touched her like this, Lindsay startled when his hands skimmed her neck and shoulders.

"I could never forget how you smell," he said, his teeth nipping the tender skin at the base of her neck. "Or how you taste."

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "I missed you, too." The pressure of his mouth increased. "Danny," she gasped.

She drew his head back and stared at him. This was the man who made her feel complete, who made her whole, who she never wanted to be without again. She needed him to know that. "I love you, Danny Messer."

He stood but said nothing, the tightening of his throat rendering him speechless. He felt so much for Lindsay than he ever had or ever would for any other woman. "I love you, Lindsay Monroe."

And he kissed her like he loved her - a deep kiss that curled her toes. She felt herself being lifted, and carried to her bedroom. Placing her on the bed and adjusting himself on top of her, Danny's mouth reclaimed hers as he savored the feel and taste of her that he'd missed so much. After he had his temporary fill of that his hands moved down her shoulders and he started to unbutton her blouse, opening it, disposing of it, gently kissing her shoulder. He moved lower, caressing her breasts, first with his hands, then his mouth. She was squirming by the time he sat up and back to rid her of her jeans.

Lindsay's hands went to his shirt and she fumbled with the buttons and then with his jeans. Finally parting both, she brushed her lips over his bare chest. He sucked in a breath as she explored him. She felt her whole body flush with heat as Danny pushed her hands aside and took control again. He was touching her everywhere now, inside and out. She tried to savor it, but with the clever ministrations of his hands, lips and body, all thought disappeared. She captured his gaze as he entered her. Sensations overwhelmed her and finally her world exploded and all that existed was her connection with Danny.

Danny watched her face as she reached her climax. Making love, seeing her come apart, Danny felt himself drowning in the sight and sounds of Lindsay. He could enjoy her only briefly, though, as his whole body tensed and his own pleasure consumed him.

* * *

Hours after alternating between sleep and making love Danny and Lindsay were still curled up in bed. Danny loved the way she pressed against him as if needing his protection. He should have never walked away from her, and felt so lucky that she had come back to him. He was never going to let her go again. 


End file.
